/ 


/ 


A  VISIT 


TO 


MY  FATHER-LAND, 


BEING  NOTES  OF  A  JOURNEY  TO  SYRIA 
AND  PALESTINE  IN  1843, 


“If  I  forget  thee,  O  Jerusalem,  let  my  right  hand  forget  her  cun¬ 
ning.”— Ps.  cxxxvii.  6. 


BY 

RIDLEY  H.  HERSCHELL, 

AUTHOR  OF  A  “  BRIEF  SKETCH  OF  THE  JEWS,”  &C.,  &C. 


PHILADELPHIA : 
HENRY  LONGSTRETH, 

No.  347  MARKET  STREET. 


STEREOTYPED  BY  R.  P.  MOGRIDGE. 


PRINTED  BY  SMITH  &  PETERS, 


Franklin  Buildings,  Sixth  S^eet  below  Aren,  Pliiladeinhm. 


\ 


TO 

SIR  CULLING  EARDLEY  SMITH,  BART. 

My  Beloved  Friend, 

f 

It  may  appear  absurd  to  dedicate  this  humble 
production  to  any  one ;  but  I  feel  pleasure  in  thus 
acknowledging  my  gratitude  to  you,  by  whose  kind¬ 
ness  my  visit  to  my  father-land  was  planned,  and 
through  whose  liberality  it  was  accomplished. 

This  visit  has  been  productive  of  much  enjoyment 

to  me,  in  which  enjoyment  you  would  have  largely 

participated,  had  you  been  able,  as  at  first  proposed, 

to  visit  Palestine  along  with  me ;  since,  so  far  from 

being  ashamed  to  claim  affinity  with  the  despised 

Jew,  I  know  it  is  rather  a  source  of  gratification  to 

(hi) 


IV 


DEDICATION. 


you  that  you  are  connected  with  the  seed  of  Abra¬ 
ham.  And  however  the  expression  of  my  feelings 
in  regard  to  the  Eastern  churches  may  be  viewed  by 
others,  I  know  you  will  join  me  in  regretting,  that 

anv  British  Christians  should  have  thrown  an  ad- 
•/ 

ditional  stumbling-block  in  the  way  of  the  Jews,  by 
recognising  these  corrupt  communions  as  churches 
of  Christ. 

I  am,  my  beloved  Friend, 

Gratefully  and  affectionately  yours, 

RIDLEY  H.  HERSCHELL. 

London ,  May  1st,  1844. 


f 


PREFACE 


TO  THE  FOURTH  THOUSAND. 


I  cannot  allow  another  edition  of  this  little  work 
to  go  forth,  without  expressing  my  thankfulness, 
that,  with  all  its  faults,  it  has  been  so  favorably  re¬ 
ceived  by  the  public.  I  am  well  aware  that  some 
things  I  have  said  in  it  are  very  unpalatable  to  many 
whom  I  sincerely  love.  I  have  been  asked  to  purge 
it  of  these,  and  to  reduce  it  to  a  simple  statement 
regarding  the  present  appearance  of  those  localities 
mentioned  in  Scripture.  To  this  I  can  only  reply : 
God  forbid  that  I  should  ever  cease  to  testify  against 
that  which  I  believe  He  sees  to  be  evil.  If  what  I 
have  said  were  not  in  some  measure  felt  to  be  true , 
it  would  not  have  caused  the  annoyance  it  has  done 
to  some  sincere  Christians.  These  are  not  times 
for  temporizing :  “  Let  God  be  true,  and  every  man 

a  liar,”  in  so  far  as  he  opposes  the  truth  of  God. 

1*  (v) 


VI 


PREFACE. 


I  have  been  told  that  some,  who  cannot  impugn 
the  truth  of  any  thing  I  have  stated,  have  imputed 
unworthy  motives  to  me  in  making  the  statements  I 
have  done.  With  this  I  have  nothing  to  do ;  they, 
and  not  I,  must  answer  for  their  evil  surmises.  It 
would  be  absurd  to  expect  our  course  to  be  as 
smooth  and  pleasant  when  we  go  against  the  general 
current  of  religious  opinion,  as  it  is  when  we  glide 
along  with  it. 

It  has  gratified  me  much  to  learn  that  this  humble 
publication  has  been  the  means  of  drawing  the  at¬ 
tention  of  many  to  the  study  of  the  prophetic  Scrip¬ 
tures.  May  it  continue  to  be  thus  honored. 


London,  October  ls£,  1845. 


CONTENTS 


American  Missionaries  - 
Anna,  Saint  -  -  - 

Athens  -  -  - 

Avignon— Pope’s  Palace  - 
Baalbec  - 
Burka  - 

Bethany  - 

Bethlehem  - 

Bethsaida  -  -  - 

Beyrout  - 

Brook  Kedron 

Capernaum  -  -  - 

Concluding  Reflections  - 
Consecration  of  a  Church  - 
Constantinople 
Conversation  with  a  Jew  - 
Corfu  - 

Cornelius  -  -  -  - 

Damascus  -  -  - 

Dead  Sea  -  -  - 

Druze  Prince  -  -  - 

Education  in  Syria 
Egypt  - 

Empress  Helena 
Fig  Orchard  - 

Fountain  of  Elisha 
Garden  of  Gethsemane  - 
Gilgal  - 

Greek  and  Romish  Churches 

Greek  Church 

Greek  Church  Schools  - 

Isle  of  Patmos  - 

Introductory  Remarks  - 

Jacob’s  Well 

Jaffa  -  -  - 

Jericho  - 

Jerusalem  - 

Jews’  Place  of  Wailing 

Jews,  The  - 


Page 


-  177 

19 

-  33 
14 

-  60 
94 

-  139 

-  158 

-  74 
58 

-  161 

74 
-  185 
53 


27 

-  30 

-  171 

-  61 

-  165 
-  181 

177, 182 

-  184 

-  139 

-  92 

-  168 

-  134 
167 

-  142 

31 

-  178 

55 

-  9 

-  103 

-  170 

-  169 

-  116 

-  131 
-  189 

17 


at  Rome 


(vii) 


Vlll 


CONTENTS 


Jewish  Ladies 

John  the  Baptist 

Joseph’s  Tomb 

Lake  of  Tiberias 

Lubban  - 

Letter  of  the  Archbishop  - 

Lepers  in  Jerusalem 

Lyons  - 

Mar  Yohanan 

Mar  Saba  -  -  - 

Message  to  Queen  Victoria 

Mission  at  Jerusalem 

Miraculous  Fire 

Mount  Carmel  - 

Mount  Moriah 

Mount  of  Olives 

Mount  Tabor 

Mount  Zion  - 

Nazareth  - 

Nestorians  - 

Paris  - 

Persecution  of  the  Jews  - 
Pool  of  Siloam 
St.  Peter’s  - 

Popish  Coins 
Pope’s  Postillions 
Prayers  to  St.  Anna 
Prophecy  of  Ezekiel  -  - 

Rachel’s  Tomb 
Regeneration  - 

Rhodes  - 

River  Jordan  - 

Rome  -  -  -  - 

Spiritual  State  of  Palestine 
Samaria  -  -  - 

Sardinian  Dominions 
Sasa  - 

Scene  in  the  Holy  Sepulchre 

Shechem  - 

Shiloh  - 

Slave  Market 

Syra — Smyrna  - 

Tractarianism  in  America 

Tyre  - 

Visit  to  the  Mint  - 

Visit  to  Loretto  - 

Visit  from  the  Bedouins 

Visit  to  the  Pasha 

Want  of  Medical  Aid 

Wilderness  of  Judea 

Worship  of  St.  Anna  - 


Page 

-  66 
163 

-  109 

73 

-  110 
149 

-  156 

13 

-  38 
160 

-  47 
153 

-  146 
174 

-  122 
136 

-  82 
120 

-  85 
37 

-  12 
67 

-  133 

18 

-  25 
26 

-  21 
124 

-  157 

64 

-  57 
74,  165 

-  16 
90 

-  95 
15 

-  71 
144 

-  100 
111 

-  51 

33, 34 

-  38 
176 

-  24 
26 

-  72 
182 

-  81 
162 

-  20 


A  VISIT 


TO 

MY  FATHER-LAND. 


There  are  already  so  many  journals  of  travels  in 
Palestine,  as  well  as  more  elaborate  and  valuable 
works  illustrative  of  Scripture  history  and  customs, 
that  I  at  first  determined  to  confine  myself  to  a  few 
observations  on  the  state  of  my  brethren,  the  Jews, 
unconnected  with  any  personal  narrative,  or  notice 
of  the  country  of  my  fathers.  But  when  I  consider 
that  all  these  works  are  beyond  the  reach  of  the  poor 
of  Christ’s  flock,  and  that  many  of  the  middle  class, 
also,  have  not  leisure  to  peruse  them,  I  feel  it  right, 
for  their  sakes,  to  mention  something  about  those 
places  that  are  interesting  to  every  one  who  loves 
the  word  of  God.  This  I  have  chosen  to  do  in  the 
mode  which  I  knew  would  be  most  agreeable  to 
those  who  have  the  first  claim  on  me,  the  people 
under  my  pastoral  care,  by  giving  the  substance  of  the 
journal  written  at  each  place ;  as,  to  them,  at  least, 
the  impression  made,  and  the  thoughts  suggested,  on 
the  spot,  will  be  far  more  interesting  than  any  more 
elaborate  description  drawn  up  afterwards.  For  the 

(9) 


10 


INTRODUCTORY  REMARKS. 


same  reason,  I  shall  not  confine  my  observations  to 
Palestine,  but  make  such  remarks  as  occurred  to  me 
on  the  moral  and  religious  state  of  the  different 
countries  through  which  I  passed  on  my  way  thither. 
The  present  state  of  the  professing  Church  of  Christ 
is  not  only  interesting  to  all  who  have  the  glory  of 
God  at  heart,  but  is  intimately  connected  with  the 
subject  which  at  present  occupies  so  many  minds, 
the  conversion  of  my  brethren,  the  Jews,  to  Chris¬ 
tianity. 

Besides  the  above,  I  feel  that  I  have  another,  and 
a  less  pleasing  duty  to  perform.  A  conflict  has 
arisen  in  these  latter  days  between  the  word  of  God 
and  the  word  of  man,  in  a  quarter  where  such  a 
conflict  was  supposed  long  since  to  have  terminated. 

If  “  teaching  for  doctrine  the  commandments  of 
men,”  be  attended  with  evil,  even  amid  the  Protestant 
light  of  England,  how  disastrous  must  be  its  conse¬ 
quences  amid  the  darkness  of  Greek  and  Romish 
superstition !  Yet  many  of  the  saints  of  God,  who 
see  and  mourn  over  its  evil  developments  in  British 
colonies  and  foreign  countries,  are,  from  their  peculiar 
position,  hampered  in  their  testimony  against  them. 
Against  these  I  feel  that  I  must  testify  boldly.  This 
is  no  time  to  wink  at  evil,  and  speak  smoothly  of  it, 
in  order  to  please  men.  A  matter  that  in  itself  is 
merely  trifling  and  absurd,  may  become  a  soul- 
destroying  error,  if  it  countenance  and  confirm  men 
in  their  allegiance  to  those  corrupt  communities, 


INTRODUCTORY  REMARKS.  1 1 

falsely  called  Christian  Churches,  that  degrade  the 
religion  of  Christ  into  a  routine  of  outward  forms 
and  observances.  I  believe  we  have  arrived  at  the 
time  when  every  thing  that  can  be  shaken,  must 
and  shall  be  shaken,  that  the  things  which  cannot 
be  shaken,  and  they  only,  may  remain.*  Let  not 
the  Lord’s  people  seek  to  prop  up  any  thing  that  is 
false.  “  How  does  God  view  this  ?  Does  the  idea, 
conveyed  to  the  minds  of  men  by  this  or  that  practice 
or  form  of  words,  accord  with  His  eternal  truth  ?” 
This  is  the  test  to  which  we  must  bring  all  things : 
these  questions,  solemnly  put,  as  in  His  sight,  would 
at  once  solve  many  difficulties,  and  prevent  all  resort 
to  that  modern  loop-hole,  the  non-natural  sense. 
The  events  that  are  daily  passing  around  us,  loudly 
call  on  us  to  oppose  the  spirit  of  Antichrist,  whether 
it  meet  us  in  the  form  of  professed  Protestantism,  or 
of  Greek  or  Romish  superstition. 

The  details  of  my  intercourse  with  the  Jews  would 
give  additional  interest  to  the  journal,  if  introduced 
in  their  proper  places ;  but  this  I  have  resolved  to 
avoid  ;  and  to  give  what  relates  to  them  in  a  separate 
form  at  the  end.  Nothing  can  be  more  hurtful  to 
the  cause  of  Christianity  among  them,  than  the  re¬ 
porting  of  conversations  held  with  them  upon  the 
subject,  with  such  circumstances  of  time  and  place 
being  mentioned,  as  point  them  out  to  their  towns- 


*  Heb.  xii.  26,  27. 


12 


PARIS. 


men  or  acquaintances.  If  a  respectable  Jew  find 
that  he  cannot  converse  on  Christianity  with  a  mis¬ 
sionary,  or  a  converted  brother,  without  its  being 
blazoned  abroad,  he  will  naturally  be  reluctant  to  do 
so ;  and  the  intercourse  between  English  and  foreign 
Jews  is  so  constant,  that  whatever  is  published  con¬ 
cerning  them  in  this  country,  soon  becomes  known 
on  the  continent. 

Having  made  these  few  preliminary  remarks,  I 
shall  now  proceed  to  give  such  extracts  from  my 
journal,  as  I  think  will  be  acceptable  to  the  class 
for  whom  it  is  chiefly  intended ;  adding  such  re¬ 
flections  as  occurred  to  me  either  at  the  time  or  after¬ 
wards.  In  supplying  such  information  as  may  be 
necessary  for  readers  who  have  not  perused  other 
works  on  the  subject,  I  shall  freely  make  use  of  the 
descriptions  and  statements  of  abler  writers  than 
myself. 

I  left  home,  accompanied  by  my  friend,  Mr.  J.  F. 
M.,  on  the  9th  of  February,  1843,  and  reached  Paris 
on  the  11th.  Although  in  London  we  are  too  well 
used  to  the  sight  of  vanity  and  sin,  yet  there  is 
something  in  the  ungodliness  of  Paris  that  cannot 
fail  to  strike  one  on  entering  it  for  the  first  time,  or 
on  returning  to  it  after  a  long  absence.  You  feel 
that  you  are  where  “  Satan’s  seat  is and  seem  to 
behold  the  awful  sight  of  a  city  wholly  given  over 
to  the  service  of  sin  and  folly.  But  it  is  a  comfort  to 
know  that  even  here,  there  are  a  few  of  the  children 


LYONS. 


13 


of  God.  It  was  delightful,  in  the  midst  of  all  this 
evil,  to  unite  with  a  little  flock  of  true  worshippers ; 
who  have  been  called  out  of  the  errors  of  Popery, 
and  the  darkness  of  nature,  into  the  marvellous  light 
of  the  Gospel.  The  Rev.  Mark  Wilks  has  done, 
and  is  doing,  a  great  work  in  Paris ;  and  it  is  very 
desirable  that  his  schools,  and  other  schemes  of  use¬ 
fulness,  should  receive  more  aid  from  the  Christian 
people  of  Britain  than  they  have  yet  enjoyed.  The 
salvation  of  souls  should  be  equally  precious  in  their 
sight,  whether  this  is  sought  to  be  accomplished  on 
the  plains  of  Africa,  or  in  the  lanes  of  Paris. 

At  Lyons,  also,  there  is  an  interesting  work  going 
on,  similar  to  that  in  Paris.  The  labors  of  the  Rev. 
C.  A.  Cordes,  the  French  Protestant  pastor,  have 
been  greatly  blessed ;  and  the  schools  here,  as  well 
as  in  Paris,  have  been  of  much  use,  not  only  to 
Gentile,  but  also  to  some  Jewish  children.  One  little 
anecdote  I  must  mention.  Mrs.  Cordes  was  one 
day  questioning  the  girls  on  religious  subjects,  and 
asked  one  little  girl  what  was  the  ground  of  her 
hope  for  eternity.  The  child  answered :  “  That 
Christ  died  for  me.”  On  hearing  this  reply,  a  num¬ 
ber  of  the  children  cried  out :  “  Oh  !  she  is  a  Jewess, 
and  yet  she  says  Christ  died  for  her  !”  “  Well,” 

rejoined  the  little  girl,  “  though  I  am  a  Jewess,  still 
Christ  died  for  me.”  How  remarkable  it  is,  that, 
even  in  childhood,  the  Gentiles  are  accustomed  to 
look  on  the  Jews  as  strangers  and  outcasts ! 

2 


14 


AVIGNON - POPE’S  PAiACE. 


At  Avignon  I  was  much  interested  by  the  ruins 
of  the  Pope’s  palace,  the  scene  of  the  martyrdom  of 
many  of  the  saints  of  God.  We  were  shown  first 
into  the  chapel,  where  was  the  altar  before  which 
the  children  of  God,  bound  with  chains,  had  to  make 
a  declaration  of  their  faith.  We  were  then  shown 
the  dungeon  where  they  had  been  imprisoned ;  upon 
the  walls  of  which  are  still  legible  several  texts  of 
Scripture  inscribed  by  these  faithful  witnesses  for 
the  truth.  —  “  Blessed  are  they  that  hunger  and 
thirst  after  righteousness,  for  they  shall  be  filled 
“  Watch  and  pray,  that  ye  enter  not  into  tempta¬ 
tion  “  He  shall  call  upon  me,  and  I  will  answer 

him.  I  will  be  with  him  in  trouble  ;  I  will  deliver 
him,  and  honor  him.”  These,  and  many  other  ap¬ 
propriate  texts,  are  still  to  be  seen.  These  saints, 
who  “  loved  not  their  lives  unto  the  death,”  being 
dead,  yet  speak ;  telling  us  to  be  faithful  and  uncom¬ 
promising  ;  to  resist,  if  need  be,  even  “  unto  blood, 
striving  against  sin,”  and  false  religion.  They  also 
testify  how  precious,  to  the  suffering  saint,  is  the  re¬ 
vealed  word  of  God ;  and  how,  in  all  circumstances, 
the  same  blessed  truths  are  the  staff  and  stay  of 
God’s  people. 

We  were  also  shown  a  curiously  constructed 
place,  strong  and  massively  built,  something  like  a 
brick-kiln,  with  a  sort  of  chimney  at  the  top.  Here 
some  precious  sons  and  daughters  of  God  were 
burned  to  death  “  for  the  testimony  of  Jesus  part 


SARDINIAN  DOMINIONS. 


15 


of  the  wall  is  still  discolored  by  the  smoke  of  the 
fagots.  After  this  we  were  conducted  to  the  torture 
room,  in  which  some  of  the  instruments  of  torture 
still  remain  ;  —  awful  tokens  of  that  persecuting 
church,  which  hates  the  light  now  as  much  as  ever 
it  did. 

At  Nice  and  Genoa  I  enjoyed  much  delightful  in¬ 
tercourse  with  English  Christians  :  but  nothing  can 
be  more  melancholy  than  the  religious  state  of  Italy. 
I  have  seen  much  of  Popery  both  in  Prussia  and 
France  ;  but  in  neither  of  these  countries  has  it  been 
able  to  “  take  away  the  key  of  knowledge refus¬ 
ing  to  enter  in,  and  hindering  those  who  would.  But 
in  Italy  this  is  done  most  effectually.  In  the  Sar¬ 
dinian  dominions,  not  a  Bible,  nor  a  religious  tract, 
can  be  given  away  without  the  risk  of  imprison¬ 
ment.  About  two  years  since,  a  Swiss  gentleman 
went  to  the  baths  at  Aix,  in  Savoy.  A  woman  was 
employed  as  a  spy,  who  professed  to  be  a  Protest¬ 
ant,  and  asked  him  for  some  religious  books.  He 
complied  with  her  request ;  she  took  them  imme¬ 
diately  to  the  priest,  and  the  priest  to  the  police ;  and 
in  a  few  hours  after  he  gave  the  books,  he  was 
thrown  into  a  dungeon  with  the  lowest  criminals, 
where  he  was  kept  for  nine  months.  A  similar  at¬ 
tempt  was  made  to  entrap  a  friend  of  mine,  when  he 
was  staying  at  Oneglia.  The  police  tried  to  per¬ 
suade  the  waiter  of  the  inn  to  ask  the  loan  of  books 
from  him ;  and  induced  an  old  Italian  gentleman  in 


16 


ROME. 


the  town  to  ask  Bibles  with  the  same  view.  Happily, 
my  friend  was  aware  of  their  devices,  and  escaped 
the  snare. 

On  the  18th  of  March,  I  arrived  in  Rome.  I 
might  fill  a  volume  with  the  reflections  which  this 
wonderful  city  naturally  suggests ;  but  my  limits 
forbid  more  than  a  few  brief  notices.  Among  the 
numerous  remains  of  heathen  magnificence,  cruelty, 
and  superstition,  one  of  those  which  most  powerfully 
affected  me,  was  the  arch  of  Titus.  This  was 
raised  to  commemorate  the  conquest  of  Jerusalem 
by  that  emperor.  A  train  of  captive  Jews,  together 
with  the  table,  the  seven-branched  candlestick,  and 
the  vessels  of  the  temple,  are  sculptured  upon  it. 
What  a  monument  of  the  faithfulness  of  God’s 
judgments  !  “  Because  thou  servedst  not  the  Lord 

thy  God, — the  Lord  shall  bring  a  nation  against 
thee  from  far,  from  the  end  of  the  earth,  as  swift  as 
the  eagle  flieth , — and  ye  shall  be  plucked  from  off 
the  land  whither  thou  goest  to  possess  it.”* 

But  if  this  ancient  memorial  of  the  captivity  of  my 
people  affected  me,  how  much  more  did  the  sight  of 
their  present  captivity  in  this  which  calls  itself  the 
“  holy  city !”  I  have  witnessed  their  oppression 
and  degradation  in  many  parts  of  the  continent ;  but 
never  did  I  see  them  so  “  trodden  down”  as  in 
Rome.  They  live  in  a  certain  part  of  the  city  called 


*  Deut.  xxviii.  47,  4p,  83. 


ROME - THE  JEWS.  17 

the  Ghetto,  closed  in  by  two  gates,  at  each  of 
which  stands  a  sentinel ;  and  so  strictly  are  they 
confined  to  this  place,  that,  when  the  Tiber  over¬ 
flowed  many  of  their  houses,  a  short  time  since,  the 
sufferers  were  not  allowed  to  move  out  of  it,  to 
obtain  even  temporary  accommodation  in  another 
quarter.  Close  to  one  of  the  gates  is  a  church,  on 
the  outside  of  which  is  a  representation  of  the  cru¬ 
cifixion,  under  which  there  is  written,  in  Hebrew, 
“  I  have  spread  out  my  hands  all  the  day  unto  a  re¬ 
bellious  people.”*  No  Jew  can  go  out  or  in  by 
this  gate  without  beholding  what  he  can  only  regard 
as  a  studied  insult  to  his  feelings.  Did  the  Pope 
and  his  cardinals  ever  read  the  Epistle  to  the  Ro¬ 
mans,  given  forth  by  the  Holy  Ghost  through  Paul  ? 
“  Boast  not  against  the  branches, — thou  bearest  not 
the  root,  but  the  root  thee.”  Plow  wonderfully  has 
professing  Christendom  overlooked  God's  oft-repeated 
declaration,  that,  though  He  punishes  the  Jews  for 
their  iniquity,  He  is  “  sore  displeased”  with  others 
who  “  help  on  the  affliction  !” 

I  went  to  St.  Peter’s  on  the  day  the  Pope,  during 
Lient,  pays  a  weekly  visit  to  it.  What  a  sight  this 
was  !  In  England  we  have  much  of  the  spirit  of 
Popery ;  but  of  what  may  be  called  its  material  part, 
its  outward  embodiment,  we  know  nothing.  Hence 
it  is,  that  those  who  denounce  Popery  as  idolatry, 


*  Isa  lxv.  2. 

2* 


18 


visit  to  st.  peter’s. 


are  often  regarded  as  bigoted  fanatics,  or,  at  least, 
as  persons,  who,  in  their  zeal  for  Protestantism,  are 
guilty  of  gross  exaggeration.  But  for  any  one  who 
has  been  in  Rome  to  speak  in  measured  terms  of 
Popery,  is  a  melancholy  illustration  how  the  love  of 
system  and  of  party  can  bring  a  man  deliberately  to 
“  call  evil  good,  and  good  evil.” 

St.  Peter’s  is  a  splendid  edifice,  and  the  Pope  was 
attended  by  a  retinue  quite  in  keeping  with  it ;  Swiss 
guards,  officers  in  rich  uniforms,  cardinals  in  their 
red  robes,  courtiers  in  state  dresses,  “  gold,  and  sil¬ 
ver,  and  fine  linen,  and  purple,  and  silk,  and  scarlet,” 
“  the  lust  of  the  eye,  and  the  pride  of  life,”  every 
thing  that  is  “  of  the  world,”  and  is  “  not  of  the 
Father,”  accompanied  this  representative  of  the  poor 
fisherman  of  Bethsaida.  The  professed  object  of  his 
visit  to  St.  Peter’s  was  to  worship  the  invisible  God, 
“  whom  no  man  hath  seen  nor  can  see.”  And  what 
was  his  first  act?  He  knelt  down  to  a  bronze 
statue,  originally  made  to  represent  Jupiter,  but  now 
called  St.  Peter ;  he  put  his  head  under  the  foot 
of  this  statue,  remaining  in  this  attitude  for  two 
minutes ;  then  put  his  lips  on  the  foot  for  about  as 
long.  If  this  were  not  worshipping  Peter,  I  know 
not  what  outward  worship  means.  And  what  is  the 
natural  effect  of  this  on  the  mind  of  the  ignorant? 
To  carry  them  one  degree  lower  in  the  scale  of 
idolatry,  even  to  the  worship  of  the  piece  of  sense¬ 
less  bronze  before  them.  I  saw  a  mother  take  her 


ST.  ANNA. 


19 


little  infant,  and  rub  its  face  on  the  toe  of  the  image. 
Many  of  the  ignorant  populace  of  Popish  countries 
are  as  complete  worshippers  of  wood  and  stone,  as 
the  heathen  inhabitants  of  the  South  Sea  Islands. 
That  they  have  profaned  the  holy  name  of  Jesus  by 
bestowing  it  on  one  of  their  idols ;  and  have  been 
made  acquainted  with  a  confused  jumble  of  broken 
fragments  of  Scripture  history  and  doctrine,  certainly 
cannot  entitle  them  to  the  name  of  Christians. 

That  the  Virgin  Mary  is  worshipped  as  a  goddess 
is  well  known,  and  has  been  often  stated  and  proved; 
but  among  their  “  lords  many,  and  gods  many,”  I 
became  acquainted  in  Rome  with  one  of  whom  I  had 
never  before  heard.  I  one  day  observed  the  waiter 
at  the  restaurateur’s  where  I  dined,  reading  a  little 
book  with  seriousness  and  attention.  I  asked  what 
it  was  ;  he  told  me  it  was  a  book  of  prayers.  Sus¬ 
pecting  it  to  be  prayers  to  the  Virgin,  I  asked  to 
whom  the  prayers  were  addressed.  “  To  Saint 
Anna.”  I  inquired  who  Saint  Anna  was  ;  and  was 
told  she  was  the  “  grandmother  of  God  !”  This  book 
of  prayers  I  purchased  of  him,  and  will  now  give 
some  account  of,  that  the  religion  of  modern  Rome 
may  be  fairly  estimated. 

It  is  a  small  pamphlet  of  twenty-four  pages, 
printed  at  Rome  in  1830.  The  title  is,  “Devout 
Exercises  in  honour  of  the  most  glorious  mother 
Saint  Anna ;  which  are  practised  every  Tuesday  in 
the  year,  in  the  parish  church  of  St.  John  the  Evan- 


20 


WORSHIP  OF  ST.  ANNA. 


gelist,  by  a  pious  assembly  of  devotees  of  the  said 
Anna.”  The  origin  of  this  pious  assembly  is  first 
set  forth ,*  and  is  said  to  be,  “  That  seeing  there  is 
but  a  small  attendance  of  the  faithful  at  the  church 
of  St.  John,  on  occasion  of  the  holy  viaticum  being 
carried  to  the  sick,  some  devout  persons  (concur¬ 
rently  with  the  orders  and  wishes  of  Pope  Clement 
XIII.,  published  on  the  22d  December,  1758,  by 
Cardinal  Guadagni,  then  vicar  of  his  holiness) 
thought  of  establishing,  in  this  venerable  church,  a 
pious  assembly,  or  confraternity  of  brothers  and 
sisters,  under  the  auspices  of  the  most  holy  sacra¬ 
ment,  and  of  the  glorious  mother,  Saint  Anna,  whom 
they  chose  as  their  special  protectress.”  A  copy  of 
the  decree  of  the  vicar-general,  testifying  the  Pope’s 
approbation  of  this  pious  union,  is  next  given.  Then 
follow  several  prayers  to  Saint  Anna,  and  a  sum¬ 
mary  of  the  indulgences  granted  to  this  faithful  com¬ 
pany  of  brothers  and  sisters. 

The  prayers  bid  defiance  to  the  Jesuitical  dis¬ 
tinctions  between  the  two  kinds  of  worship,  latria , 
and  dulia  ;  the  one  kind  paid  to  God,  and  the  other 
to  the  saints.  I  can  afford  space  for  but  few  ex¬ 
tracts  ;  but  these  few  will  fully  bear  out  this 
assertion. 

“We  congratulate  you,  O  glorious  Saint  Anna, 
who,  for  your  eminent  virtues  and  sublime  sanctity, 
were  chosen  by  God  to  be  the  mother  of  the  queen 
of  angels ;  and,  prostrate  at  your  feet,  we  pray  you 


PRAYERS  TO  ST.  ANNA. 


21 


with  all  our  heart  to  obtain  for  us,  from  the  divine 
incarnate  Word,  the  pardon  of  our  sins.  We  sup¬ 
plicate  you  to  obtain  from  God  for  us,  that  our 
prayers  may  be  favorably  heard.” 

The  same  sentiments  are  repeated  in  different 
words  in  every  prayer ;  and  in  several  of  them  there 
is  no  mention  made  of  our  blessed  Saviour.  Why 
should  there  be ;  these  Romish  idolators  have  other 
Saviours,  and  other  intercessors.  In  proof  of  this  I 
transcribe  the  whole  of  the  third  prayer.* 

“  We  adore  you,  O  glorious  Saint  Anna ;  and  by 
that  unspeakable  joy  which  you  experienced,  when 
the  most  holy  soul  of  Mary  was  united  in  your 
bosom  to  her  most  pure  body,  we  humbly  pray  you 
to  obtain  for  us  from  God,  by  your  most  efficacious 
intercession,  that  we  may  be  pure  in  mind  and  body, 
in  order  to  enjoy  His  presence,  promised  to  those 
who  are  clean  of  heart.  Amen.” 

This  absurd  and  impious  idolatry  reaches  its 
climax  in  the  following  prayer,  (which  I  also  give 
entire,)  in  which  there  is  no  mention  of  God  at  all ; 
the  two  goddesses,  Anna  and  Mary,  being  able 
of  themselves  to  bestow  divine  grace  and  protection. 

“  We  bless  you  through  all  ages,  O  glorious  Saint 
Anna;  and  by  the  joy  which  your  heart  felt  in 


*  I  do  not  feel  it  necessary  to  give  the  original  Italian, 
as  it  is  probable  the  whole  book  will  be  reprinted,  with  a 
translation. 


22 


PRAYERS  TO  ST.  ANNA. 


touching,  caressing,  and  imprinting  kisses,  not  less 
pure  than  tender,  on  the  most  pure  face  of  the  babe 
Mary,  your  daughter,  we  humbly  pray  you  to  im¬ 
plore  from  the  same,  our  lady,  her  most  efficacious 
protection  and  grace,  that  we  be  not  deceived  by  the 
cunning  of  the  infernal  enemy,  and  may  avoid  every 
criminal  act,  however  small.  Amen.” 

I  shall  conclude  my  notice  of  this  extraordinary 
manual  of  devotion,  by  some  extracts  from  an  act 
of  self-dedication  to  Saint  Anna. 

“  O  most  glorious  and  most  blessed  Saint  Anna, 
mother  of  the  great  mother  of  God,  I,  N.,  in  pre¬ 
sence  of  all  the  court  of  heaven,  elect  and  confirm 
you  to  be,  after  Jesus  and  Mary,  my  chief  advocate 
and  mother ;  I  declare  my  desire  always  to  esteem, 
serve,  and  love  you  as  such,  all  the  term  of  my  life. 

“  I  am  rejoiced  at  your  high  sanctity,  dignity,  and 
glory,  in  your  having  for  a  daughter  the  queen  of 
heaven. 

“  I  propose  to  exert  all  my  power  to  promote  your 
glory  :  and  to  do  the  utmost  I  can,  that  you  may  be 
revered  and  loved.  Deign  to  receive  me  into  the 
number  of  your  servants ;  to  adopt  me  for  your 
son ;  and  to  keep  me  ever  under  the  mantle  of  your 
protection. 

“  Procure  me  light,  and  inward  grief  for  my  sins ; 
make  me  amend  my  life,  and  imitate  those  virtues, 
by  which  you  were  so  pleasing  to  the  divine  eyes. 

“  Come,  most  compassionate  mother,  together 


PRAYERS  TO  ST.  ANNA. 


23 


with  your  most  delightful  daughter,  to  my  aid  and 
defence,  when  I  shall  be  presented  at  the  divine  tri¬ 
bunal,  to  be  judged  for  all  the  years  and  days  of  my 
life.  Deliver  me  from  that  horrible  sentence,  and 
from  the  eternal  pains  of  hell,  that  I  have  so  many 
times  deserved.” 

All  comment  on  this  would  be  superfluous ;  and 
this  book,  bearing  on  its  title  page  the  sanction  of 
Papal  authority,  was  given  to  this  poor  man  by  a 
priest !  We  can  only  cry,  “  O  Lord,  how  long  !” 
I  cannot  help  saying,  that  I  regard  the  tractarian 
heresy  as  a  judgment  on  the  Church  of  England, 
for  her  sin  in  recognising  the  orders  of  the  “  man 
of  sin,”  instead  of  protesting  against  Rome,  as  no 
church  of  Christ  at  all,  but  a  system  of  idolatry. 

But  I  must  linger  no  longer  in  Rome  ;  one  feature 
more  of  the  “  mystery  of  iniquity,”  and  I  have  done. 

One  day,  in  company  with  some  friends,  I  visited 
the  mint.  We  were  shown  a  cabinet  containing 
medals  struck  in  the  reigns  of  the  various  Popes. 
The  dies  of  these  are  all  preserved  ;  and  the  govern¬ 
ment  officers  willingly  strike  off  as  many  of  them  as 
the  visitors  please  to  purchase.  One  would  imagine 
that  some  few  of  them  would  have  been  prudently 
left  in  the  shade,  or  rather  that  the  dies  would  have 
been  destroyed,  so  that  no  memorial  of  the  coins 
might  remain.  If  medals  had  been  struck  in  Eng¬ 
land,  in  commemoration  of  the  atrocities  of  Mary’s 
reign,  or  of  the  legal  murders  of  that  of  Charles  the 


24 


VISIT  TO  THE  MINT. 


Second,  they  would  not  have  been  preserved  and 
struck  off  in  the  present  day,  but  would  have  been 
indignantly  disowned  by  succeeding  governments. 
Not  so  the  unchangeable  papacy  ;  it  is  no  wise 
ashamed  of  any  of  its  previous  acts ;  but  gives  you 
such  coins  as  the  following,  with  the  same  readiness 
with  which  the  English  would  present  a  foreigner 
with  a  Waterloo  medal. 

The  destroying  angel,  with  a  cross  in  one  hand 
and  a  spear  in  the  other  :  Inscription,  “  Massacre 
of  the  Huguenots,”*  1575.  Reverse,  “  Gregorius 
XIII.  Pont.  Max.  An.  I.” 

A  wild  boar  hunt :  Inscription,  “  The  pious  shep¬ 
herd  wages  war  only  against  wild  beasts. ”f  Re¬ 
verse,  “  Paulus  II.  Venetus.  Pont.  Max.” 

Paul  II.  ascended  the  Papal  throne  in  1464,  and 
fiercely  persecuted  the  Lollards ;  the  boar  hunt, 
therefore,  must  refer  to  them,  who  were  indeed  hunted 
like  wild  beasts. 

Christ  driving  the  buyers  and  sellers  out  of  the 
temple :  Inscription,  “  My  house  shall  be  called  a 
house  of  prayer.”:):  Reverse,  “  Paulus  IV.  Pont. 
OP.  T.M.” 

This  no  doubt  refers  to  that  pontiff’s  proposed 
expulsion  of  the  Jews  from  Rome. 


*  Ugonottorum  Strages. 
f  Solum  in  feras  pius  bellatur  pastor. 
i  Domus  mea  domus  orationis  voc. 


POPISH  COINS. 


25 


But  perhaps  the  most  surprising  of  the  whole,  is 
the  following  honest  confession  in  hard  metal,  of 
what  is  so  often  denied  in  words ;  namely,  that  they 
worship  the  Pope. 

Crowning  the  Pope :  Inscription,  “  Whom  the} 
create  they  adore.”*  Reverse,  “Adrianus  VI.  Pont. 
Maxim.” 

This  candid  acknowledgment  that,  like  the  hea¬ 
then,  they  worship  the  work  of  their  own  hands,  is 
a  degree  of  simplicity  one  hardly  expected  in  Ro¬ 
manists. 

On  the  30th  of  March,  we  left  Rome  by  the  dili¬ 
gence.  It  appeared  very  odd  to  see  upon  the  coach, 
and  upon  the  sleeves  of  the  postilion’s  coat,  the  mitre 
and  keys.  This  is  rather  an  extraordinary  practical 
commentary  upon  the  verse,  Thou  art  Peter,  and 
upon  this  rock  I  will  build  my  church.”  The  spirit¬ 
ual  head  of  a  kingdom,  “  not  of  this  world,”  uses 
the  keys  of  the  kingdom  of  heaven  as  a  mark  of 
earthly  sovereignty !  In  travelling  through  the 
Pope’s  dominions,  one  is  constantly  reminded  of  the 
unscriptural  nature  of  his  pretensions.  Who  can 
look  on  one  of  his  soldiers,  for  example,  without  be¬ 
ing  reminded  of  the  words,  “  My  kingdom  is  not  of 
this  world ;  if  my  kingdom  were  of  this  world,  then 
would  my  servants  fight.”f 


*  Quem  creant  adorant 

3 


|  John  xviii.  36. 


26 


VISIT  TO  LORETTO. 


I  cannot  say  that  the  Pope’s  diligences  are  at  all 
arranged  for  the  comfort  of  the  passengers ;  nor  can 
I  speak  very  favorably  of  their  speed.  I  often  thought 
of  the  proverb  that  speaks  of  making  mountains  of 
mole-hills  ;  for  at  every  little  rise  in  the  road,  we  had 
bullocks  to  help  us  up ;  and  at  every  little  descent, 
the  wheel  was  locked,  and  again  was  unlocked,  by 
a  little  winding  machine  that  made  no  small  noise, 
which  at  night  was  a  great  disturbance  and  annoy¬ 
ance  to  us. 

On  the  third  day  after  leaving  Rome,  we  arrived 
at  Loretto.  This  place  is  famous  for  one  of  the 
lying  wonders  of  Popery.  It  is  said  that  the  angels 
lifted  up  the  house  of  the  Virgin  Mary  in  Nazareth, 
and  flew  with  it  to  Loretto,  where  it  now  stands  in 
the  inside  of  a  church.  Soon  after  our  arrival  we 
went  to  visit  this  church.  It  is  much  resorted  to  by 
pilgrims  from  all  quarters,  who  go  there  to  worship 
“  the  mother  of  God,”  as  they  blasphemously  call 
her.  The  interior  of  the  church  is  rather  handsome ; 
but  the  great  object  of  attraction  is  a  small  square 
building  within  it,  called  the  Virgin’s  house.  The 
outside  of  it  is  decorated  with  sculptured  figures  of 
the  prophets,  and  a  white  marble  pavement ;  which 
latter  is  much  worn  by  the  poor  deluded  worshippers, 
whose  practice  is  to  go  round  it  on  their  knees.  On 
entering  the  door,  which  is  guarded  by  a  soldier, 
you  get  into  a  small  apartment,  from  which  the  light 
of  heaven  is  excluded,  and  a  few  lamps  shed  a  dim 


CONVERSATION  WITH  A  JEW. 


27 


light  around,  a  fit  emblem  of  this  false  religion.  In 
this  stands  a  figure  of  the  Virgin  as  large  as  life, 
dressed  up,  and  ornamented  with  sparkling  jewels  ; 
and  the  lamps  are  so  arranged  as  to  throw  a  bright 
light  upon  this  figure,  while  every  other  object  is  in 
shade.  We  were  much  struck  with  the  resemblance 
of  this  image  to  that  of  Diana  of  Ephesus,  which  we 
had  seen  at  the  Capitol.  On  seeing  this  idol,  I  could 
not  help  asking  myself,  “Am  I  in  Europe,  and  in  the 
nineteenth  century  ?”  Yes,  in  this  enlightened  age, 
thousands  of  devotees  come  to  pay  their  homage  to 
this  dressed  doll ;  and  yet  Italy  is  called  by  courtesy 
a  Christian  country !  Is  it  reasonable  to  expect 
that  any  one  who  is  concerned  for  the  honor  of  his 
Lord,  can  speak  in  measured  terms  of  such  a  system 
of  lies  as  Popery  1 

We  reached  Ancona  on  the  1st  of  April,  and  on 
the  evening  of  the  2d  we  embarked  on  board  of 
an  Austrian  steamer.  One  of  our  fellow-passengers 
was  a  Jew ;  and  as  an  interview  on  the  high  seas  is 
not  liable  to  the  objections  that  attend  reporting  an 
interview  on  land,  I  may  mention  that  I  had  much 
interesting  conversation  with  him.  He  seemed  an 
upright  and  sincere  man,  and  entered  readily  into 
conversation  with  me.  One  evening,  after  the  other 
passengers  had  retired,  he  came  to  me  and  said,  that 
his  mind  had  been  very  much  disturbed  and  unsettled 
about  the  coming  of  the  Messiah.  He  had  always 
been  taught  to  believe  that  before  His  coming,  the 


28 


CONVERSATION  WITH  A  JEW. 


Jews  were  to  become  more  religious ;  but  instead  of 
this,  they  are  becoming  more  and  more  ungodly,  and 
if  this  be  so,  will  the  Messiah  ever  come?  I  told 
him,  that  to  me,  who  believe  He  has  already  come, 
as  the  one  great  sacrifice  for  sin,  this  is  no  dif¬ 
ficulty;  as  He  himself  says  in  reference  to  His 
second  coming :  “  When  the  Son  of  Man  cometh, 
shall  he  find  faith  on  the  earth  V 1  He  said  this  to 
Jews,  and  it  is  literally  taking  place  among  them ; 
but  God  is  not  leaving  Himself  without  witnesses,  as 
the  prophet  has  said,  “  Except  the  Lord  of  Hosts 
had  left  unto  us  a  very  small  remnant,  we  should 
have  been  as  Sodom,  and  we  should  have  been  like 
unto  Gomorrah.”*  This  small  remnant  of  witnesses 
consists  of  truly  religious  Jews,  who  believe  in  Jesus 
Christ  as  their  Messiah,  and  walk  in  holiness  of  life. 
I  then  asked  him  what  he  meant  by  being  religious? 
He  said,  putting  on  the  phylacteries,  by  which  we 
are  reminded  of  God’s  commandments  ;  and  repeat¬ 
ing  about  the  sacrifices,  which  reminds  us  of  God’s 
pardoning  mercy.  I  asked  him  what  Scriptural 
authority  there  was  for  putting  on  phylacteries  ?  He 
seemed  amazed  at  my  ignorance,  and  repeated  the 
passage  in  Deut.  vi.  6,  8.  “And  these  words  which 
I  command  thee  this  day  shall  be  in  thine  heart,  and 
thou  shalt  bind  them  for  a  sign  upon  thine  hand,  and 
they  shall  be  as  frontlets  between  thine  eyes.”  I 


*  Isaiah  i.  9. 


CONVERSATION  WITH  A  JEW. 


29 


told  him  that  if  God  meant  the  words  of  Moses  to 
be  put  into  a  leather  case,  it  ought  to  be  the  whole 
books  of  Moses,  and  not  merely  one  passage  from 
them ;  but  that  any  one  giving  heed  to  the  spirit  of 
that  chapter,  and  not  to  the  mere  letter,  would  see  it 
had  a  far  deeper  meaning  than  binding  on  a  few 
words  of  the  law  to  the  forehead  and  arm ;  that  it 
meant  the  laying  up  of  God’s  precepts  in  the  heart, 
and  practising  them  in  the  life  and  conversation. 
He  still  insisted  that  if  it  were  not  for  the  phy¬ 
lactery,  and  other  outward  observances,  there  would 
be  no  religion  at  all  among  the  Jews ;  and  that  for 
the  sake  of  the  unlearned,  especially,  it  is  necessary 
to  have  many  outward  observances.  I  reminded 
him  that  one  of  the  blessings  promised  at  the  coming 
of  the  Messiah,  is,  that  to  the  meek  or  poor  the  good 
tidings  of  salvation  is  to  be  announced ;  and  that 
“  the  wayfaring  man,  though  a  simple  one,  shall  not 
err”  in  the  way  of  holiness.  I  then  explained  to 
him  how  the  pardoning  love  of  God  is  seen  in  Christ 
Jesus ;  and  how  I  can  behold  in  Him,  Jehovah  tzid- 
kenu,  the  Lord  our  righteousness ;  that  I  see  in  Him 
my  resurrection  from  the  dead,  and  look  forward 
with  confidence  to  His  second  coming  in  glory,  when 
this  corruptible  shall  put  on  incorruption,  and  this 
mortal  shall  put  on  immortality.  He  said,  “  I  wish 
I  could  believe  all  this  ;  but  business  occupies  my 
thoughts  so  much,  that  I  have  no  time  for  thinking 
on  these  things ;  and  besides  this,  I  live  in  a  bigoted 

3* 


30 


CORFU. 


Roman  Catholic  country,  where  all  the  displays  of 
their  religious  ceremonies  are  very  offensive  to  the 
feelings  of  a  devout  Jew ;  and  if  I  wished  to  become 
a  Christian,  I  must,  by  the  law  of  the  land,  become 
a  Roman  Catholic ;  and  I  have  seen  so  much  wick¬ 
edness  and  bigotry  among  the  Jews  who  become 
Romanists,  that  I  shrink  from  the  idea  of  becoming 
one  of  them.”  He  then  related  to  me  several  cases 
of  Jews  who  have  become  Jesuits,  which  I  do  not 
consider  myself  at  liberty  to  repeat. 

On  April  4th  we  cast  anchor  at  Corfu ;  and  we 
called  immediately  on  Mr.  Lowndes,  of  the  London 
Missionary  Society,  who  received  us  very  kindly. 
He  showed  us  the  different  schools  established  here 
by  government,  and  by  the  London  Missionary 
Society.  We  were  not  a  little  astonished,  in  one  of 
these  schools,  to  see  several  Greek  priests  learning 
reading  and  writing  along  with  the  boys ;  the  sight 
of  these  bearded  priests,  in  their  sacerdotal  garments, 
learning  their  B,  a,  ba,  and  twice  one  are  two,  gave 
us  no  very  high  idea  of  the  state  of  learning  among 
these  self-styled  successors  of  the  apostles.  On 
mentioning  this  afterwards  to  a  friend,  and  express¬ 
ing  my  surprise  that  persons  so  grossly  ignorant 
could  be  admitted  into  the  priesthood,  he  said  it  was 
by  no  means  uncommon ;  that  they  learn  to  repeat 
the  service  by  rote,  and  their  flocks  neither  know 
nor  care  about  the  amount  of  their  attainments.  He 
told  me  an  anecdote  highly  illustrative  of  the  march 


GREEK  CHURCH. 


31 


of  intellect  in  Greece.  On  seeing  one  day,  as  we 
did,  a  priest  in  a  school  among  little  boys,  he  entered 
into  conversation  with  him ;  and  learned,  among  other 
things,  that  the  annual  income  of  many  of  the  priests 
is  a  mere  pittance,  quite  inadequate  to  supply  them 
even  with  the  necessaries  of  life ;  that  he  himself 
had  at  one  time  only  what  amounted  to  about  £2 
10s.  of  our  money  per  annum.  My  friend  asked 
him  what  he  did  to  help  out  his  income :  “  I  kept  a 
school ;”  answered  he. 

Here,  for  the  first  time,  I  beheld  the  worship  of 
the  Greek  Church ;  and  I  was  truly  astonished  at  it. 
The  officiating  priest  was  rattling  over  the  service 
with  a  rapidity  that  rendered  it  impossible  to  hear 
any  articulate  sound ;  but  in  this  portion  of  the 
service  the  people  took  no  part,  nor  did  they  give 
the  slightest  heed  to  it.  They  came  into  the  church, 
crossed  themselves,  bowed  themselves  till  their  faces 
nearly  touched  the  ground,  got  up  again,  crossed 
themselves,  and  down  again,  many  times  over  ;  they 
then  ran  to  the  pictures  on  the  wall,  crossed  and 
bowed  before  them,  and  then  kissed  them  one  after 
another.  I  looked  on  in  utter  amazement  to  see 
them  thus  running  about  the  church  like  mad 
people ;  and  here,  again,  I  asked  myself:  “Am  I  in 
a  Christian  land,  as  it  is  called,  and  does  this  profess 
to  be  Christian  worship?”  So  much  for  my  first  im¬ 
pressions  of  what  some  persons  in  England,  ignorant 
of  its  real  character,  call  “a  sister  church.” 


32 


ATHENS. 


We  left  Corfu  on  the  5th,  and  reached  Patras  on 
the  6th.  From  thence  we  proceeded  towards 
Athens,  and,  after  a  somewhat  rough  voyage,  ar¬ 
rived  there  on  the  8th.  We  lost  no  time,  but  went 
immediately  to  the  Acropolis,  and  I  was  overpowered 
by  the  scene  ;  it  surpassed  any  thing  I  could  have 
imagined.  The  labor  and  art  which  are  displayed 
there,  and  the  massiveness  of  the  structures,  all  cry 
aloud,  as  it  were,  and  declare  the  former  glory  of 
Athens.  From  the  Acropolis  we  proceeded  to  Mars’ 
Hill,  where  Paul  stood  before  the  wise  and  noble  of 
Athens.  Mars’  Hill  is  an  elevated  rock  standing 
opposite  the  Acropolis.  From  this  spot  Paul  had  a 
full  view  of  all  the  splendid  buildings  that  then 
adorned  Athens ;  and  as  he  looked  on  their  magnifi¬ 
cent  temples,  of  which  the  Athenians  were  justly 
proud,  “  his  spirit'  was  stirred  in  him,”  when  he 
saw  that  these  only  ministered  to  their  idolatry,  and 
he  said  to  them :  “  God  that  made  the  world,  and 
all  things  therein,  seeing  that  He  is  Lord  of  Heaven 
and  earth,  dwelleth  not  in  temples  made  with 
hands.”*  It  is  impossible  to  describe  the  vividness 
with  which  this  address  of  Paul’s  came  to  my  mind  ; 
and  how  very  appropriate  it  is  there  felt  to  be.  And 
if  he  stood  there  now,  what  could  he  say  to  the 
Athenians?  Would  he  not  still  count  them  in  all 
things  “too  superstitious?”  Would  he  not  think 


*  Acts  xvii.  24. 


ATHENS. 


SYRA. 


33 


their  worship  only  a  different  form  of  idolatry ;  and 
declare  that  the  God  he  served  is  still  to  them  an 
“  unknown  God  V9 

I  looked  with  the  deepest  interest  on  the  Corinth 
ian  hills,  and  on  the  road  to  Corinth,  on  which 
Paul  travelled  when  he  departed  from  Athens.  The 
lively  feelings  with  which  we  view  the  spots  that 
have  been  trodden  or  inhabited  by  eminent  saints  of 
God,  teach  us  how  easily  these  feelings  may  grow 
into  idolatry  ;  how  easy  it  is  to  begin  by  simply 
commemorating  a  saint,  and  end  in  worshipping  him. 
But  how  would  all  such  undue  veneration  be  rebuked 
by  these  holy  men  :  “  See  thou  do  it  not ;  for  I  am 
thy  fellow-servant.”* 

We  left  Athens  with  much  regret,  as  we  should 
have  enjoyed  spending  several  days  in  examining 
its  interesting  ruins.  On  Sunday  the  9th  we  reached 
Syra.  We  expected  to  have  found  public  worship 
there,  in  connexion  with  the  Church  Missionary 
Society  ;  but,  owing  to  the  absence  of  the  Rev.  Mr. 
Hildner,  there  was  none  on  that  day;  we,  therefore, 
returned  to  the  steamer,  where  we  could  enjoy  some 
quiet  reading.  I  felt  on  this,  and  on  many  other 
occasions,  the  blessedness  of  being  able,  at  all  times, 
to  enter  within  the  veil,  and  to  hold  communion  with 
Christ,  and  with  the  Church  universal,  in  heaven 
and  earth. 


*  Rev.  xxii.  9. 


34 


SMYRNA. 


We  left  Syra  on  the  10th,  and  did  not  reach 
Smyrna  until  the  12th,  at  noon,  having  been  obliged 
to  lay  at  anchor  for  twenty-four  hours  on  account 
of  a  high  head  wind.  On  approaching  Smyrna  I 
read  the  epistle  sent  to  it  by  our  Saviour,  Rev.  ii. 
Here  once  flourished  a  holy  and  spiritual  church  ; 
but,  alas  !  the  glory  has  departed.  Though  the  name 
and  the  outward  forms  of  Christianity  remain,  there 
is  no  body  of  spiritual  Christians  to  whom  the  Lord 
could  now  say,  “  I  know  thy  works,  and  tribulation, 
and  poverty,  but  thou  art  rich.” 

I  called  on  Mr.  Temple,  the  American  missionary  ; 
from  whom  I  received  an  interesting  account  of  Mr. 
Cohen’s  labors  among  the  Jews.  The  late  Rev. 
John  Hartley,  whom  I  met  at  Nice  a  short  time  be¬ 
fore  he  fell  asleep  in  Jesus,  mentioned  to  me  his  hav¬ 
ing  baptized  Mr.  Cohen,  about  fourteen  years  ago, 
at  Constantinople,  along  with  some  others  of  his 
brethren  the  Jews.  -This  stirred  up  great  persecu¬ 
tion  on  the  part  of  the  unbelieving  Jews,  who,  by 
bribery  and  other  unworthy  means,  got  their  con¬ 
verted  brethren  thrown  into  prison.  On  this,  seve¬ 
ral  of  the  Armenian  Christians  of  Constantinople 
raised  a  sum  of  money  among  them,  to  obtain  jus¬ 
tice  for  their  persecuted  Jewish  brethren.  I  may 
here  mention,  that,  by  general  testimony,  the  Ar¬ 
menian  is  by  far  the  best  of  the  eastern  churches ; 
and  that  body  is  the  only  one  that  takes  any  interest 
in  the  conversion  of  the  Jews.  Mr.  Hartley  had 


SMYRNA. 


35 


heard  nothing  of  Mr.  Cohen  for  a  long  time,  and  de¬ 
sired  me  to  make  inquiry  about  him.  Mr.  Cohen  is 
connected  with  the  London  Society  for  promoting 
Christianity  among  the  Jews  and  it  was  with  great 
pleasure  I  heard  such  a  favorable  testimony  borne 
to  the  faithful  labors  of  this  Christian  Jew. 

After  leaving  Mr.  Temple,  I  went  to  call  on  Mr. 
Barker,  the  agent  of  the  British  and  Foreign  Bible 
Society ;  and  there  I  found  Mr.  Cohen.  I  soon  pro¬ 
ceeded  with  him  to  the  Jewish  quarter ;  and  was  de¬ 
lighted,  indeed,  to  find  how  highly  he  is  respected  by 
the  Jews.  The  poor  come  to  him  to  unburden  their 
hearts,  telling  him  all  their  griefs,  and  looking  up  to 
him  for  counsel  with  the  utmost  deference.  He  goes 
to  work  in  the  right  way  among  his  brethren  ;  living 
among  them,  and  gaining  their  affections,  by  taking 
a  deep  interest  in  all  that  concerns  them  ;  thus  prov¬ 
ing  to  them  that  Christianity  is  a  living  principle, 
and  not  a  mere  system  of  doctrines.  If  we  seek 
the  highest  interests  of  a  people,  we  must  prove  to 
them  that  we  really  feel  love  towards  them  ;  and  this 
is  especially  necessary  in  the  case  of  the  Jews,  who 
have  been  so  much  oppressed  by  nominal  Christians. 
I  am  led  to  make  these  remarks  by  finding  a  con¬ 
stant  tendency  among  Christians  to  trust  too  exclu¬ 
sively  to  mere  theological  argument,  as  the  only  in- 


•  I  have  since  learned  that  he  has  left  it. 


3G 


EMBARK  FOR  CONSTANTINOPLE. 


strument  to  be  used  in  attempting  to  convert  the 
Jews. 

Finding  that  the  steamer  from  Smyrna  to  Beyrout 
would  not  start  for  more  than  a  week,  we  resolved 
to  occupy  the  intermediate  time  in  visiting  Constan¬ 
tinople.  On  the  afternoon  of  April  14th  we  went  on 
board  the  steamer  that  was  to  convey  us  thither, 
and  soon  discovered  most  interesting  fellow-travel¬ 
lers.  These  were,  Mar  Yohannan,  a  bishop  of  the 
.Nestorian  Christians,  three  American  missionaries, 
with  their  wives,  and  two  female  teachers,  all  on 
their  way  to  Persia,  to  labor  among  the  Nestorians. 
One  of  the  missionaries,  the  Rev.  Justin  Perkins, 
has  already  labored  several  years  among  them. 
Some  time  since,  he  returned  to  America,  accom¬ 
panied  by  Mar  Yohannan,  who  was  deputed  by  the 
Nestorians  to  thank  their  Christian  brethren  in 
America  for  what  they  had  already  done,  and  to 
request  them  to  send  more  laborers  among  them. 
This  request  had  been  complied  with  ;  and  the  whole 
party  were  now  on  their  return  to  Persia.  Having 
been  much  interested  in  the  Nestorian  Christians 
by  Dr.  Grant’s  account  of  them,  I  felt  particularly 
delighted  at  this  meeting.  When  Mr.  Perkins  intro¬ 
duced  me  to  Mar  Yohannan,  I  was  much  struck 
with  his  decidedly  Jewish  countenance.  On  shaking 
hands  with  me,  he  said,  in  broken  English :  “I  be 
a  Jew,  we  be  brethren.”  With  this  newly  found 
brother,  who  seems  a  sincere  Christian  man,  I  had 


NESTOR  IANS. 


37 


much  interesting  conversation.  We  spoke  of  their 
origin.  He  said  there  was  no  doubt  it  was  Jewish;1 
but  of  which  tribe  he  considered  doubtful.  My  own 
impression  has  always  been  that  they  are  the  de¬ 
scendants  of  the  early  Jewish  Christians,  the  “  many 
thousands  of  Jews  which  believed,  and  were  all 
zealous  of  the  law,”*  in  the  days  of  the  apostles  ,* 
and  who  were  scattered  abroad  at  the  destruction 
of  Jerusalem.  He  said  it  was  the  opinion  of  some 
among  them  that  they  are  descended  from  the  Jeru¬ 
salem  Jews.  It  appears  to  me  doubtful  that  the  ten 
tribes  will  ever  be  discovered  in  a  body;  and  Scripture 
does  not  lead  us  to  suppose  they  will  be  found  either 
as  professing  Christians  or  as  Jews ;  because  it  is 
prophesied  of  them  that  they  are  to  serve  the  gods 
of  the  nations  among  whom  they  are  cast  out :  “  The 
Lord  shall  scatter  thee  among  all  people,  from  the 
one  end  of  the  earth  even  unto  the  other ;  and  there 
thou  shalt  serve  other  gods,  which  neither  thou  nor 
thy  fathers  have  known,  even  wood  and  stone. ”f 
This  must  be  spoken  of  the  ten  tribes ;  because  no 
such  scattering  of  the  two  tribes  occurred  until  after 
the  destruction  of  Jerusalem  by  the  Romans ;  and, 
amid  all  their  sins,  the  two  tribes  have  never,  since 
their  dispersion,  been  guilty  of  worshipping  other 
gods,  but  have  always  viewed  idolatry  with  abhor¬ 
rence. 


*  Acts  xxi.  20. 


|  Deut.  xxviii.  64. 


38 


TRACTARIANISM. 


Mar  Yohannan  asked  me  many  questions  about 
the  state  of  Christianity  in  England ;  particularly  as 
to  whether  there  was  much  love  and  Christian  union. 
I  explained  the  nature  of  the  divisions  among  us ; 
j  telling  him  that  all  true  Christians  are  agreed  in 
essentials,  and  only  differ  on  minor  points.  He 
asked  me  whether  the  bishops  allow  pious  dissenters 
to  preach  in  the  Church  of  England  pulpits ;  I 
answered,  No  ,*  at  which  he  seemed  much  grieved, 
and  said  :  “  We  let  all  good  ministers  preach  in  our 
churches.”  One  of  his  first  questions  to  me,  was : 
“  Are  you  high  Church  V*  Having  satisfied  him  on 
this  point,  he  said :  “  I  am  glad  of  it ;  I  do  not  like 
high  Church ;  high  Church  will  soon  become  Pope.” 
I  asked  him  to  explain  what  he  meant  by  high 
Church  ;  and  learned,  from  his  account,  that  those 
views,  known  in  this  country  as  Puseyite  or  Tracta- 
rian,  are  rapidly  spreading  among  the  Episcopalians 
of  America.  As  this  extraordinary  heresy  is  one 
of  the  most  striking  signs  of  these  latter  times ; 
being,  as  it  were,  the  making  “  an  image  to  the 
beast,  which  had  the  wound  by  a  sword,  and  did 
live,”*  it  may  be  worth  while  to  give  my  readers 
some  account  of  its  workings  in  America ;  and  the 
most  distinct  mode  of  doing  this  will  be  to  give  an 
extract  from  a  work  recently  published  by  Mr. 
Perkins. 


Rev.  xiii.  14. 


TRACTARIANISM  IN  AMERICA. 


39 


“  This  modern  pharisaism,”*  says  he,  “  has 
thrust  itself  upon  my  attention,  in  the  course  of  my 
visit  to  the  United  States,  in  connection  with  the  Nes- 
torian  bishop,  in  instances  enough,  if  described,  to  fill 
a  volume,  and  in  a  manner  not  a  little  painful  to 
contemplate.  Not  long  after  our  visit  to  Virginia, 
an  editor  of  a  religious  newspaper  in  that  state  sent 
me  a  number,  which  tells  the  whole  story  in  a  few 
words,  and  from  which  I  give  below  an  extract  to 
the  reader. 

“  ‘  A  new  Argument  for  Episcopacy. 

“  ‘  The  Rev.  Mr.  Perkins,  and  Mar  Yohannan,  have 
recently  been  on  a  visit  to  the  friends  of  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Holladay,  in  Virginia.  A  few  days  ago,  the 
Episcopal  clergyman,  in  one  of  our  towns  in  which 
they  stopped  for  the  Sabbath,  importuned  the  good 
bishop  to  attend  his  church  half  of  the  day,  which 
the  stranger  did.  The  clergyman,  in  the  integrity 
of  his  heart,  seized  upon  the  opportunity  to  make 
a  glorification  of  Episcopacy,  a  thing  which  has 
been  so  repeatedly  attempted,  in  similar  circum¬ 
stances,  since  Mar  Yohannan’s  arrival  in  this 
country,  as  not  a  little  to  annoy  him,  as  he  himself 


*  A  residence  of  eight  years  in  Persia  among  the  Nes- 
torian  Christians.  By  the  Rev.  Justin  Perkins.  An¬ 
dover,  1843. 


40 


TRACTARIANISM  IN  AMERICA. 


informs  us, — the  artless  Nestorian,  in  his  own  simple 
language,  having  come  to  America,  not  to  divide 
Christians  here,  but  to  hold  communion  with  all  who 
love  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  of  whatever  name ; 
whereas  the  Episcopalians,  he  adds,  always  inquire 
eagerly  of  him  about  the  forms  and  ceremonies  of 
his  church,  (the  first  question  uniformly  being,  How 
many  orders  of  the  clergy  have  you  ?)  while  they  ask 
hardly  ever  a  word  about  the  state  of  morals  or  vital 
religion  among  his  people. 

“  ‘  But  we  hasten  to  the  logic  of  the  subject.  The 
Episcopal  clergyman  in  question  labored  to  prove  to 
his  congregation,  in  the  presence  of  Mar  Yohannan, 
that  the  Nestorians  are  Episcopalians ;  and,  as 
they  refer  their  conversion  to  Christianity  back  to 
the  time  of  the  apostles,  therefore ,  modern  Episco¬ 
pacy  must  be  apostolic.  One  link  in  the  ponderous 
chain  of  argumentation,  leading  to  this  conclusion, 
as  alluded  to  by  the  good  clergyman,  (and  we  sup¬ 
pose  originated  by  him,)  was  the  resemblance  be¬ 
tween  Mar  Yohannan’s  cloak  and  the  Episcopal  robe . 
But,  unfortunately  for  the  argument,  Mar  Yohan¬ 
nan’s  cloak  is  the  common  Persian  cloak ,  worn 
alike  by  all  sects  and  classes  in  Persia,  as  Mr.  Per¬ 
kins  informs  us, — nothing  but  the  bishop’s  cap  in  his 
dress  being  peculiar  and  distinctive  of  his  clerical 
office.  *  *  Oh,  what  a  pity  that  the  builders  of 
Christ’s  spiritual  temple  (for  such  we  believe  many 
of  our  Episcopalian  brethren  to  be)  should  think  so 


TRACTARIANISM  IN  AMERICA. 


41 


much  more  of  the  fabric  and  fashion  of  their  scaf¬ 
folding,  than  of  the  temple  itself!  *  *  How  must 
such  zeal  for  form  appear,  to  an  artless  mind  unac¬ 
customed  to  it  ?  Listen  and  see  how  it  does  appear. 
In  our  town,  on  the  first  evening  of  Mr.  Perkins’ 
and  Mar  Yohannan’s  arrival  here,  two  Episcopalian 
clergymen  were  the  first  to  make  their  way  to  their 
lodgings ;  and  wished  the  bishop  to  be  at  their 
churches  both  morning  and  evening  on  the  Sabbath 
— one  of  them  confidently  urging :  “  We  have  a 
claim,  because  you  belong  to  us.”  “  I  do  not  wish 
to  hear  this  word,”  earnestly  replied  Mar  Yohannan  ; 
“  I  have  not  come  here  to  make  difference  among 
Christians ;  I  love  all  who  love  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ.  The  name  is  nothing ;  but  faith  and  lave. 
I  desire  to  see  all  Christians  in  your  happy  country 
love  one  another :  I  do  not  wish  to  have  you  say 
you  belong  to  us.  We  all  have  one  Lord  ;  we  will 
all  go  to  one  heaven.”  What  reply  could  our 
worthy  Episcopal  brother  make  to  this  pointed  lec¬ 
ture  from  the  artless  Nestorian  prelate?  Not  one 
word.’  (From  the  Watchman  of  the  South ,  May 
12th,  1842.) 

“  While  it  is  much  to  be  lamented,”  continues 
Mr.  Perkins,  “  that  a  Christian  prelate  from  be¬ 
nighted  Asia,  should  witness  such  developments  of 
a  narrow  exclusiveness  among  Christians  in  Pro¬ 
testant  America,  it  is  matter  of  unfeigned  gratitude 
to  God,  that  he  has  not,  as  we  trust,  been  thus 

4* 


42 


TRACT  ARIANISM  IN  AMERICA. 


injured.  He  has  been  disappointed  by  it,  and  often 
not  a  little  grieved ;  particularly  by  some  open 
attacks  upon  himself  in  periodicals.”  Mr.  Perkins 
then  quotes  a  long  article  from  the  Churchman,  an 
Episcopal  paper,  of  New  York,  of  which  I  can  only 
afford  room  for  an  extract.  “  What  effect  should 
Mar  Yohannan’s  associating  himself  with  separatists 
have  upon  us  ?  If  an  English  bishop  came  to  this 
country,  and,  avoiding  his  legitimate  brethren,  threw 
himself  into  the  hands  of  separatists,  what  effect 
would  it  have  on  his  reception  ?  Has  not  this 
bishop,  by  his  intercommunion  with  separatists,  so 
put  himself  under  the  censure  of  the  church,  and  so 
violated  unity,  that  he  must  be  put  in  the  same 
category  with  those  in  whose  company  he  is  found  ? 
And  all  this  will  be  in  accordance  with  the  apostolic 
canons  ;  the  directions  of  which  on  these  points  are  : 
1st,  That  heretics  shall  not  be  received  into  com¬ 
munion  :  2d,  That  no  strange  bishop  shall  be  re¬ 
ceived  without  letters  commendatory  :  3d,  That 
those  bishops  who  pray  with  heretics  shall  not  be 
received  into  communion ;  and  those  who  suffer  them 
to  officiate  as  clergymen  shall  be  deposed.  In  one 
or  all  of  these  points,  Mar  Yohannan  will  certainly 
be  found  wanting ;  and  either  is  sufficient  to  exclude 
him  from  communion.”  ( The  Churchman,  Nov. 
12th,  1842.) 

Mar  Yohannan  wrote  an  answer  to  these  charges, 
a  translation  of  which  is  given  by  Mr.  Perkins.  It 


LETTER  OF  MAR  YOIIANNAN. 


43 


is  so  full  of  simplicity  and  good  sense,  that  I  will 
transcribe  the  greater  part  of  it,  omitting  the  portion 
in  defence  of  Nestorius,  as  being  irrelevant  to  the 
main  subject. 

Mar  Yohannan’s  Vindication. 

“  My  brethren  of  the  Episcopalians  : 

“  What  evil  or  wicked  thing  have  I  wrought  in 
relation  to  you,  that  some  of  you  should  write  about 
me  in  your  newspapers  and  scatter  them  through  all 
America  ? 

“  I  am  one  poor  man,  and  my  nation  is  poor.  I 
came  to  thank  Christians  in  this  country  for  having 
helped  us,  and  to  ask  them  to  help  us  more,  for  the 
name  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  We  are  members 
of  one  another ;  if  one  member  suffer,  do  not  all 
suffer  with  it  ?  Well,  if  you  had  desired  our  good, 
would  you  not  sometimes  have  inquired  of  me  thus : 
What  is  the  condition  of  your  people  in  that  land  of 
heathens?  Is  there  a  church  there?  Are  there 
good  men  ?  Are  there  tokens  of  the  influence  of  the 
Holy  Spirit  ?  What  is  the  state  of  knowledge  and 
instruction?  What  are  the  morals?  But  from  very 
few  of  you  have  I  heard  one  of  these  questions. 
You  ask :  How  many  orders  have  you  ?  My 
friends,  forms  are  nothing  ;  ‘  neither  is  circumcision 
any  thing,,  nor  uncircumcision,  but  a  new  creature.’ 

“  If  you  say  that  our  church  is  built  upon  the 


44 


LETTER  OF  MAR  YOHANNAN. 


apostolic  foundation,  the  oldest  of  the  churches,  why 
shall  we  place  our  confidence  in  age,  name,  or  forms  1 
No,  but  in  the  Lamb  of  God,  who  descended  from 
His  throne  on  high  to  save  that  which  was  lost. 
Observe  and  behold  ;  the  Creator  of  the  heights  and 
of  the  depths  did  not  demean  himself  so  loftily  as 
some  denominations,  who  say — We  are  ;  there  is  no 
other  true  church.  The  Lord  said,  Every  man 
who  exalteth  himself  shall  be  abased,  but  whoever 
humbleth  himself  shall  be  exalted.  Again  :  your 
church  came  out  from  the  church  of  the  Pope.  Is 
there  not  some  leaven  of  the  Pope  still  remaining  in 
many  of  you  1  Take  care ;  if  you  say  c  No,  this 
word  is  a  mistake,’  I  have  proofs.  What  are  those 
pictures  in  some  of  your  churches  1  This  is  a  mark 
of  the  Pope.  I  know  you  do  not  worship  the  pic¬ 
tures  :  but  your  children  who  rise  up  after  you, 
seeing  them  in  the  churches,  will  worship  them. 
Mark  that  second  commandment.  God  said — Thou 
shalt  not  make  unto  thee  any  likeness  or  resemblance 
of  any  thing  in  heaven  above,  nor  in  the  earth  beneath, 
nor  in  the  waters  under  the  earth.  Another  com¬ 
mandment  of  God  is,  Love  your  neighbors  as  your¬ 
selves  ;  but  you  say — Our  church  is  great.  Very 
well ;  your  church  has  become  great,  has  it  ?  Why  ? 
That  it  may  despise  small  churches  ?  Our  Lord 
Jesus  Christ  says,  Whoever  will  be  greatest,  let  him 
be  servant  of  all.  This  haughtiness  is  another  mark 


LETTER  OF  MAR  YOU  ANNAN. 


45 


of  the  Pope,  who  teaches  that  none  will  be  saved 
who  are  out  of  our  church.  *  *  *  * 

“  I  do  not  say  that  your  way  (church  polity)  is 
not  a  good  one — very  good,  if  you  properly  follow 
it ;  not  in  exclusiveness  and  ostentation,  saying — We 
are  the  only  true  church ;  nor  in  hypocrisy,  like 
sepulchres  which  are  white  without,  but  within  full 
of  all  uncleanness.  God  looketh  upon  the  heart.  It 
is  important  for  Christians  to  abound  in  love,  and 
not  in  vain-glorying.  But  every  tree  is  known  by 
its  fruit;  men  also,  by  their  works. 

“  I  love  Episcopalians,  and  Congregationalists, 
and  Presbyterians,  and  Dutchmen,  and  Lutherans, 
and  Methodists,  and  Baptists ; — all,  as  brethren  in 
Christ.  There  is  no  difference  in  them  with  me. 
The  greater  brethren  are  all  these ;  and  if  there  be 
less,  we  are  the  least.  We  open  our  churches  to 
their  priests,  and  receive  them  as  the  priests  of  God 
and  the  apostles  of  our  Lord.  Our  Lord  said — Who¬ 
soever  receiveth  a  prophet  in  the  name  of  a  prophet, 
shall  receive  a  prophet’s  reward.  And  whosoever 
receiveth  a  righteous  man  in  the  name  of  a  righteous 
man,  shall  receive  a  righteous  man’s  reward.  Thus 
have  we  learned  from  our  Lord. 

“  You  are  displeased  with  me,  are  you,  because  I 
have  associated  with  the  Presbyterians  and  Congre¬ 
gationalists  ?  So  the  newspaper  teaches.  I  do  not 
practise  partiality.  Is  it  very  strange  that  I  associate 
most  with  the  Presbyterians  and  Congregationalists  l 


46 


LETTER  OF  MAR  Y0HANNAN. 


No  ;  they  are  equally  our  brethren  ;  and  they  have 
come  and  helped  us,  in  books  and  teachers,  and 
have  done  a  great  and  good  work  for  our  nation. 
Ought  I  to  abandon  them  and  form  new  alliances  ? 
We  do  not  so  understand  propriety  and  justice-. 
Would  it  not  have  been  a  great  wonder,  very  wrong 
in  me,  and  very  bad  for  my  nation,  had  I  forsaken 
them  and  connected  myself  with  others  ?  It  would 
be  a  black  reproach,  and  a  great  sin  for  us  thus  to 
abuse  the  good  they  have  done  us.  God  would  be 
displeased  with  us  for  such  a  course  of  ingratitude. 
But  we  will  never  be  unmindful  of  their  beneficence. 
We  will  cling  to  these  benefactors  as  we  do  to 
Nestorius.  Our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  said — Whoever 
shall  give  to  drink  a  cup  of  cold  water  shall  not  lose 
his  reward.  How  much  greater  will  be  the  reward 
of  those  who  have  given  to  drink  the  instructions  of 
Christ.  And  shall  we  abuse  the  good  work  they 
have  done  for  us  ?  Never.  We  must  obey  God, 
rather  than  man ;  and  keep  the  commandments  of 
God,  rather  than  the  commandments  of  men.  We 
all  have  one  Lord,  one  faith,  one  baptism,  one  God 
and  Father  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  who  is  over 
all,  and  in  all ;  over  us,  over  you,  and  over  them ; 
who  will  judge  us  all  at  the  last  day,  and  if  found  at 
his  right  hand,  will  raise  us  all  to  the  same  heaven. 
We  shall  dwell  in  peace  together  there.  May  the 
grace  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  the  love  of  God  the 


MESSAGE  TO  QUEEN  VICTORIA. 


47 


Father,  and  the  communion  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  be 
with  us  all  for  ever.  Amen. 

“  Your  fellow-sinner  and  unworthy  Christian 
brother, 

“  Mar  Yohannan.” 

“Nov.  1842.” 


Mar  Yohannan  asked  me  why  we  did  not  send 
missionaries  to  the  Persian  Jews.  I  said  that  pro¬ 
bably  we  may  do  so,  if  God  permit.  He  said — 
“  Let  them  be  pure  and  holy  men  of  God,  who  will 
desire  to  know  nothing  but  Jesus  Christ  and  Him 
crucified.” 

Before  taking  leave  of  Mar  Yohannan,  I  must 
mention  a  request  of  his  that  amused  me  highly. 
“  I  have  a  great  favor  to  ask  you,”  said  he,  “  will 
you  promise  to  grant  it  to  me?”  I  replied  that  I 
would,  if  it  were  in  my  power  to  do  so.  “  It  is,” 
said  he,  “  that  you  would  ask  Queen  Victoria  to 
write  a  letter  to  the  King  of  Persia,  to  tell  him  not 
to  let  the  Koords  oppress  us.  We  are  willing  to 
pay  our  taxes,  and  to  live  honestly  and  peaceably ; 
but  the  Koords  injure  and  oppress  both  us  and  our 
uncles,  the  Jews.*  I  do  not  ask  Queen  Victoria  to 
send  an  army  ;  if  she  will  only  write  to  our  King,  I 
am  sure  he  will  pay  attention  to  what  she  says.”  It 
was  with  much  difficulty  I  could  persuade  this  simple 

*  This  has  been  painfully  confirmed  by  the  recent  ex¬ 
terminating  attack  on  the  hapless  Nestorians. 


48 


CONSTANTINOPLE. 


good  man  that  it  was  quite  impossible  for  me  to  con¬ 
vey  any  message  to  Queen  Victoria ;  however,  to 
pacify  him,  I  promised  that  on  my  return  to  England 
I  would  publish  his  request,  either  in  the  newspapers, 
or  in^a  book,  by  which  means  it  might  meet  the  eye 
of  some  one  who  might  communicate  it  to  the 
Queen.  I  was  much  struck  by  this  simple  testimony 
to  the  influence  of  Britain.  If  her  power  were 
wielded  for  the  glory  of  God,  how  much  good  she 
might  accomplish  among  the  nations  of  the  earth  ! 

We  arrived  at  Constantinople  about  five  o’clock 
in  the  morning  of  the  16th  April.  The  view  of  the 
city  from  the  water  is  indeed  magnificent.  “  The  first 
part  of  the  city  which  meets  the  view  upon  entering 
the  Bosphorus  from  the  south,  is  called  Stamboul. 
Here  the  massy  dome  of  St.  Sophia,  and  graceful 
minarets  of  every  kind,  crowd  upon  the  sight.  Pa¬ 
laces,  mosques,  and  baths,  seem  to  be  without  num¬ 
ber  in  this  renowned  capital.  And  then  the  rich 
verdant  trees  that  surround  so  many  of  the  white 
marble  buildings,  and  the  clear  blue  sea,  which,  like 
a  deep,  full  river,  laves  the  shore  and  flows  up  the 
^harbor,  combine  to  give  Constantinople  a  gorgeous 
beauty  which  is  perhaps  unrivalled  by  any  city  in 
the  world.”*  The  beauty,  however,  is  confined  to 
the  view  from  without.  In  the  interior,  the  streets 


*  Narrative  of  a  Mission  of  Enquiry  to  the  Jews  from 
the  Church  of  Scotland,  p.  466. 


CONSTANTINOPLE. 


49 


are  narrow  and  filthy,  infested  to  a  most  annoying 
degree  by  dogs  that  belong  to  no  one,  but  live  by 
what  they  can  pick  up  in  the  streets,  where  they  re¬ 
main  day  and  night.  Through  the  day  they  are 
generally  asleep,  and  when  roused,  or  driven  out  of 
the  way,  are  too  lazy  to  bark,  but  go  to  sleep  again. 
I  was  strongly  reminded  by  them  of  the  Prophet’s 
description  of  unfaithful  pastors — ■“  They  are  all 
dumb  dogs,  they  cannot  bark ;  sleeping,  lying  down, 
loving  to  slumber.”*  Hateful  and  disgusting  as 
these  wretched  animals  are  in  the  eyes  of  men,  how 
much  more  hateful  in  the  sight  of  a  holy  God  are 
selfish  and  worldly-minded  men,  who  presume  to 
call  themselves  pastors  of  Christ’s  flock  !  At  night, 
these  dogs  go  howling  about  the  city,  exactly  ac¬ 
cording  to  the  description  of  the  Psalmist — “  They 
return  at  evening,  they  make  a  noise  like  a  dog,  and 
go  round  about  the  city.”j* 

It  was  on  Sunday  morning  we  landed  at  Constan¬ 
tinople,  and  after  breakfast  one  of  the  American 
missionaries,  with  whom  we  had  travelled,  called  to 
take  us  to  worship  with  his  brethren.  It  was,  in¬ 
deed,  a  refreshing  season  to  join  in  praising  our 
Heavenly  Father  with  these  dear  brethren,  nearly 
all  of  whom  are  engaged  in  missionary  labor.  I 
was  delighted  to  find  among  them  the  Rev.  Mr. 
Schwartz,  a  Christian  Jew,  connected  with  the  Lon- 


*  Isaiah  lvi.  10. 


5 


j-  Psalm  lix.  6. 


50 


JEWS  IN  CONSTANTINOPLE. 


don  Society  for  promoting  Christianity  among  the 
Jews.*  This  “  unity  of  spirit”  is  indispensable  in 
a  missionary  to  the  Jews.  What  can  they  think 
of  Christianity  if  they  see  those  who  profess  it 
standing  aloof  from  one  another,  or  hear  one  sect 
of  Christian  ministers  denouncing  as  “  unauthorized 
teachers”  others  who  give  abundant  proof  of  piety, 
ability,  and  every  other  requisite  for  missionary  or 
ministerial  work  ? 

Mr.  Schwartz  labors  among  the  German  Jews  in 
Constantinople,  and  has  much  intercourse  with 
them  ,*  and  some  have  been,  by  his  instrumentality, 
stirred  up  to  seek  the  Lord  their  God,  and  Jesus 
whom  He  hath  sent. 

Mr.  Schauffler,  the  American  missionary,  devotes 
himself  to  the  Spanish  Jews.  For  a  considerable 
time  he  met  with  great  opposition.  The  chief  Rabbi 
not  only  excommunicated  all  Jews  who  dared  to 
visit  him,  but  even  prohibited  any  of  them  from  en¬ 
tering  the  street  where  he  lived.  Since  the  publica¬ 
tion  of  Mr.  Schauffler’s  translation  of  the  Bible  into 
Jewish  Spanish,  however,  the  general  feeling  of  the 
Jews  towards  him  is  much  more  favorable.  They 
feel  that  he  has  conferred  a  great  boon  upon  them, 
and  his -translation  of  the  Bible  is  much  sought  after 
by  them. 


*  Now  in  connection  with  the  Free  Church  of  Scotland’s 
mission  to  the  Jews. 


SLAVE  MARKET. 


51 


In  walking  through  the  streets  of  Constantinople, 
I  was  much  struck  with  the  dress  of  the  Turkish 
women.  They  wear  a  handkerchief  bandaged  over 
the  forehead,  and  another  over  the  nose,  and  lower 
part  of  the  face,  so  that  nothing  but  the  eyes  is  seen. 
This  forcibly  reminded  me  that,  though  still  in  Eu¬ 
rope,  I  was  now  in  a  city  where  Christianity  is 
openly  denied.  The  degradation  of  the  females 
which  prevails  in  Mohammedan  as  well  as  heathen 
countries,  shows  how  much  women  owe  to  that  di¬ 
vine  revelation  which  declares  that  “  in  Christ  Jesus 
there  is  neither  male  nor  female.” 

The  slave  market  is  another  proof  how  far  behind 
the  rest  of  Europe  Turkey  is  in  civilization.  The 
chief  part  of  the  business  appeared  to  be  over  when 
I  visited  it,  as  there  were  only  a  few  young  women 
and  boys  left.  The  purchasers  went  up  to  these 
poor  creatures,  felt  their  arms,  and  examined  them 
as  one  would  examine  cattle.  The  merely  animal 
expression  of  their  countenances  bespoke  the  lowest 
state  of  mental  degradation,  and  gave  an  awful  pic¬ 
ture  of  what  corrupt  human  nature  can  do  ,*  that 
man  should  bring  his  fellow-creature,  with  a  soul  as 
immortal  as  his  own,  to  the  level  of  the  brutes  that 
perish  !  If  we  feel  indignant  at  a  Turk  for  doing 
this,  what  shall  we  say  to  men  calling  themselves 
Christians,  who  venture  to  defend  a  system  so  hor¬ 
rible  !  " 

On  the  22d  we  returned  to  Smyrna,  and  on  the 


52 


RETURN  TO  SMYRNA. 


23d  went  to  the  morning  service  at  the  English 
chapel.  Before  relating  what  I  saw  and  heard  there, 
I  must  make  a  remark  which  applies  not  only  to 
this,  but  to  every  future  occasion  on  which  I  may 
see  it  right  to  notice  the  doings  of  churches  or  reli¬ 
gious  societies.  In  these  days  of  division  and  party 
strife,  a  lover  of  peace  is  strongly  tempted  to  let 
things  alone,  and  pass  over  in  silence  what  he  can¬ 
not  notice  with  approbation.  This  is  rather  to  con¬ 
sult  his  own  ease  and  safety,  than  the  advancement 
of  Christ’s  kingdom.  Besides,  does  it  not  really 
savor  of  a  sectarian  spirit  to  say,  “  I  do  not  belong 
to  the  Church  of  England ;  its  doings  are  no  busi¬ 
ness  of  mine?”  If  we  feel  that  we  belong  to  the 
Church  of  Christ,  the  proceedings  of  every  section 
of  that  church  must  be  interesting  to  us,  and  must 
be  either  painful  or  pleasing,  as  we  consider  them  in 
harmony  with,  or  contrary  to,  the  mind  of  God.  I 
believe  the  time  is  come  when  all  false  delicacy  must 
be  laid  aside,  and  the  truth  spoken  out,  as  unto  the 
Lord,  and  not  unto  men.  What  might  have  been 
considered  a  few  years  ago  as  a  piece  of  isolated 
absurdity,  can  now  be  viewed  in  no  other  light  than 
part  of  a  widely  extended  plan  to  restore  the  errors 
of  Popery. 

The  building  which  has  for  some  years  been  used 
as  a  place  of  worship  in  Smyrna,  in  connection  with 
the  Church  of  England,  was  on  this  day  consecrated, 
as  it  is  called,  by  the  Bishop  of  Gibraltar.  When 


CONSECRATION  OF  A  CHURCH. 


53 


the  congregation  were  assembled,  the  Bishop  entered, 
carrying  a  silver  staff  on  his  arm,  about  the  size  of 
an  ordinary  poker,  on  the  top  of  which  was  a  cross. 
He  walked  up  to  the  communion  table,  followed  by 
three  ministers  in  surplices,  and  laid  the  silver  staff 
on  the  table  where  the  communion  vessels  were  set 
out  for  show,  the  Lord’s  Supper  not  being  dispensed 
on  that  day.  Having  done  this,  he  and  his  attend¬ 
ants  walked  back  again  to  the  door,  where  they  faced 
about,  and  walked  again  towards  the  altar,  the 
Bishop  repeating :  “  Open  to  me  the  gates  of  right¬ 
eousness,”  and  the  rest  of  the  service  prescribed  for 
the  occasion.  Now  I  will  ask  any  candid  member 
of  the  Church  of  England,  whether  this  silly  aping 
of  Popish  ceremonies  is  expedient  in  places  where 
hitherto  Christianity  has  been  seen  only  through  the 
medium  of  Romish  and  Greek  churches.  Should 
not  the  great  aim  of  Protestant  Christians  be,  not 
thus  to  identify  themselves  with  Popery,  but  to 
show  that  their  Christianity  is  something  very  differ¬ 
ent  from  it? 

On  Monday,  the  24th  of  April,  about  three  o’clock 
in  the  morning,  we  left  Smyrna  in  an  Austrian 
steamer  for  Beyrout.  The  accommodation  was  good, 
and  the  weather  very  favorable  ;  the  only  discomfort 
we  felt  was  from  the  crowded  state  of  the  deck, 
which  was  nearly  filled  with  passengers.  These 
were  chiefly  Turks,  and  a  great  part  of  their  time 
was  spent  in  acts  of  devotion.  Each  one,  every 


54 


AUSTRIAN  STEAMER. - TURKS. 


time  he  prayed,  took  out  a  little  pocket  compass,  to 
ascertain  in  what  direction  Mecca  lay,  that  he  might 
turn  his  face  towards  it.  Their  devotions  consisted 
chiefly  in  bending  many  times  to  the  ground,  raising 
the  ears  with  the  thumbs,  which  a  fellow-passenger 
explained  to  me  meant  lifting  up  their  ears  for  an 
answer  to  their  prayers ;  and  turning  their  faces  to 
the  right  and  left,  which  I  was  told  is  to  frighten 
away  the  evil  spirits.  The  concluding  ceremony 
was  stroking  the  face  and  beard  several  times,  which 
was  said  to  signify  the  wiping  away  of  sin.  When 
the  wind  got  up  a  little  they  went  through  all  these 
movements  with  redoubled  earnestness.  A  person 
on  board  asked  one  of  them  why  he  prayed  so  much  ; 
he  replied,  because  the  wind  blew,  and  he  was  afraid. 
If  Christianity  does  not  present  to  us  a  living,  spiritual 
reality,  but  only  sends  us  to  rites  and  ceremonies  for 
comfort,  wherein  is  it  better  than  Mohammedanism, 
or  any  other  false  religion  ?  If  Protestantism  does 
not  manifest  the  clearest  gospel  light  in  the  midst 
of  those  so  devoted  to  forms,  her  colonial  establish¬ 
ments  will  be  little  else  than  “  darkness  visible.” 

About  three  o’clock  in  the  afternoon  the  captain 
pointed  out  to  us  the  Isle  of  Patmos.  The  weather 
being  very  fine,  we  were  enabled  to  go  close  by  it ; 
and  a  ruin  was  pointed  out  to  us  which  is  said  to  be 
that  of  the  prison  where  John  was  confined.  Whether 
this  were  the  case  or  not,  mattered  little  to  me  ;  there 
was  the  island  itself,  where  our  blessed  Saviour  ap- 


ISLE  OF  PATMOS. - REFLECTIONS. 


55 


peared  to  the  beloved  disciple,  and  I  viewed  it  with 
the  deepest  emotion.  To  this  lonely  and  desolate 
spot,  far  removed  from  his  brethren  and  children  in 
the  gospel,  was  John  banished,  “  for  the  word  of  God 
and  for  the  testimony  of  Jesus  Christ.”*  Here  was 
no  consecrated  building,  no  outward  ordinance ;  but 
here  the  Lord  met  him,  and  communed  with  him ; 
and  the  barren  rock  was  indeed  consecrated  ground 
to  John.  My  recent  visit  to  Smyrna,  one  of  the 
churches  to  which  Jesus  sent  a  message  from  hence, 
led  me  to  think  of  the  tenor  of  the  charges  delivered 
by  this  the  true  Bishop  of  souls.  Does  He  speak 
to  the  churches  of  government  or  of  ritual  ?  Does 
he  reprove  them  for  inattention  to  outward  forms,  or 
exhort  them  to  the  observance  of  times  and  seasons? 
No ;  the  inward  life  in  the  soul,  and  its  outward 
manifestations  in  walk  and  conversation,  are  the 
only  subjects  on  which  he  touches.  “  I  have  some¬ 
what  against  thee,  because  thou  hast  left  thy  first 
love.”  “  I  know  thy  works,  that  thou  hast  a  name 
that  thou  livest,  and  art  dead.”  “  Thou  sayest,  I 
am  rich,  and  increased  with  goods,  and  have  need 
of  nothing ;  and  knowest  not  that  thou  art  wretched, 
and  miserable,  and  poor,  and  blind,  and  naked.” 
Alas !  who  can  listen  to  the  tone  of  gratulation  in 
which  too  many  sections  of  the  church  speak  of  their 
state,  without  being  reminded  of  this  address  to  the 


*  Rev.  i.  9. 


56 


ISLE  OF  FATMOS. - REFLECTIONS. 


church  of  Laodicea  ;  and  fearing  that  if  our  Bishop 
and  Head  of  the  Church  now  sent  a  message  to  pro¬ 
fessing  Christendom,  it  would  be  couched  in  the 
same  language ! 

How  many  thoughts  crowded  on  my  mind  as  I 
gazed  on  this  barren  and  desolate  island  !  The  won¬ 
derful  vision  vouchsafed  to  John, — the  chart  of  pro¬ 
phecy  displayed  to  him, — the  awful  and  glorious 
things  that  “  shall  be  hereafter  things  still  future, 
yet  perhaps  not  far  distant !  Oh,  how  speedily  man’s 
silly  inventions  and  vain  speculations  fall  before  a 
believing  view  of  “  the  root  and  offspring  of  David, 
the  bright  and  morning  star  1”  We  need  no  offi¬ 
ciating  priest,  no  abstractive  called  the  church ,  to 
bring  us  into  communion  with  God.  “  The  Spirit 
and  the  Bride  say,  Come,  and  let  him  that  is  athirst 
come ;  and  whosoever  will,  let  him  take  the  water 
of  life  freely.”  How  blessed,  to  the  humble  Chris¬ 
tian,  these  latest  revelations  of  the  Divine  mind, 
authoritatively  promulgated  on  this  lonely  rock ! 
And  how  awful  the  threatening  that  sums  them  up ! 
“  If  any  man  shall  add  unto  these  things,  God  shall 
add  unto  him  the  plagues  that  are  written  in  this 
book.”  Is  not  “  unwritten  tradition,”  of  which  we 
now  hear  so  much,  somewhat  like  an  addition  to 
God’s  words  1 

On  Tuesday,  the  25th,  we  landed  at  Rhodes, 
where  the  apostle  Paul  touched  on  his  way  from 
Ephesus  to  Jerusalem.  The  town  looked  dull  and 


RHODES. 


57 


deserted ;  but  this  was  accounted  for  by  our  being 
told  it  was  on  that  day  a  feast  of  the  Greek  church, 
and  that  the  greater  part  of  the  inhabitants  had  gone 
out  of  the  town  to  make  merry.  The  British  Consul 
kindly  sent  his  dragoman  with  us,  to  show  us  the 
street  of  the  knights.  I  soon  discovered  that  our 

I  guide  was  a  Jew,  and  learned  from  him  that  there 
are  between  two  and  three  hundred  Jewish  families 
in  the  place.  The  street  of  the  knights  is  a  long, 
narrow  street,  with  old  houses  on  each  side,  on  the 
walls  of  which  are  carved  the  arms  of  the  knights 
who  were  engaged  in  the  crusades.  These  our 
guide  pointed  out  to  us ;  and  added,  contemptuously, 
pointing  to  an  image  of  the  Virgin — “  That  is  the 
figure  of  a  woman.” 

Before  we  left  Rhodes,  a  number  of  Jews  and 

!  Jewesses  came  on  board  the  steamer  to  look  at  the 
machinery,  who  were  courteously  received  by  the 
captain.  It  was  interesting  to  me  to  see  so  many 
of  my  nation  ;  and  curious  to  observe,  in  the  dress 
of  the  women,  the  same  love  of  wearing  ornaments 
that  existed  among  them  of  old.  Some  of  the  child¬ 
ren  had  their  foreheads  covered  with  little  gold  coins 
threaded  on  a  string,  which  had  a  very  odd  appear¬ 
ance. 

We  left  Rhodes  the  same  evening ;  and  on  the 
27th,  about  noon,  arrived  at  Cyprus.  Here  I  was 
again  reminded  of  Paul ;  and  also  of  Barnabas,  who 
was  a  native  of  Cyprus.  Although  this  island  is 

i 


58 


BEYROUT. 


very  fertile,  every  thing  about  it  has  the  appearance 
of  poverty  and  desolation.  It  is  now  very  thinly 
inhabited ;  and  large  tracts  of  land  are  uncultivated. 
We  are  told  that  land  can  be  purchased  at  from  two 
to  four  shillings  an  acre.  I  could  not  help  wishing 
that  some  of  our  starving  population  of  England 
were  transported  hither,  to  cultivate  the  land  that 
lies  waste.  There  are  no  Jews  in  the  island  of 
Cyprus. 

On  the  morning  of  the  28th  we  landed  at  Beyrout. 
I  was  very  kindly  received  by  the  American  mis¬ 
sionaries  ;  the  Rev.  Eli  Smith  invited  me  to  stay  in 
his  house,  where  I  was  much  refreshed  in  spirit  by 
prayer  and  conversation  with  these  dear  brethren. 
As  I  paid  a  longer  visit  to  this  place  on  my  return 
from  Palestine,  I  shall  reserve  the  account  of  it  until 
my  second  visit. 

We  left  Beyrout  on  the  2d  of  May,  accompanied 
by  three  other  travellers.  We  were  now  obliged  to 
perform  all  our  journeys  on  horseback ;  the  roads  in 
Syria,  if  roads  they  may  be  called,  being  quite  unfit 
for  carriages  of  any  kind.  Soon  after  leaving  Bey¬ 
rout  we  began  to  ascend  the  mountains  of  Lebanon, 
and  continued  ascending  for  seven  or  eight  hours. 
The  change  from  the  warm  climate  of  Beyrout  to 
the  cold  air  of  the  mountain  ridge  was  very  great. 
When  we  got  to  the  height  of  about  6000  feet,  we 
began  to  descend  the  other  side  of  the  ridge ;  and 
at  seven  o’clock  we  arrived  at  Aksah,  a  small  village 


SLEEPING  APARTMENT. 


59 


in  the  plain  that  lies  between  the  ridges  of  Lebanon 
and  Anti-Lebanon.  This  village  consists  of  a  few 
mud  hovels,  into  the  largest  of  which  we  were  ad¬ 
mitted  for  the  night ;  the  family  who  inhabited  it 
going  to  sleep  in  the  stable  to  make  room  for  us. 
After  a  fatiguing  ride  on  horseback  of  fourteen 
hours,  I  hoped  to  enjoy  a  refreshing  sleep ;  but  in 
this  I  was  sadly  disappointed.  To  convey  an  ade¬ 
quate  idea  of  the  combined  annoyances  of  our  apart¬ 
ment  would  be  a  vain  attempt.  The  room  was  so 
filled  with  the  smoke  of  cow-dung,  (which  when 
dried  is  used  for  fuel,)  that  we  could  not  see  any 
thing  at  a  yard  distant.  After  taking  a  little  food, 
we  spread  our  mats  on  the  floor,  and  lay  down  to 
rest,  as  we  fondly  hoped  ;  but,  alas !  no  sooner  had 
we  settled  ourselves,  than  such  a  fierce  onset  was 
commenced  by  the  tiny  inhabitants  of  the  place,  that 
all  the  previous  assaults  made  on  us  in  Italy  and 
elsewhere,  were  as  nothing  in  comparison.  In  a 
little  time  I  heard  sundry  strange  noises  in  the  room ; 
and  being  unable  to  sleep,  I  got  up,  and  took  a  light 
to  examine  what  sort  of  companions  we  might  have 
in  the  apartment  that  was  professedly  given  up  solely 
to  our  use.  In  one  corner  I  found  a  calf ;  in  another, 
a  sick  goat ;  over  our  heads,  pigeons  ;  and  to  com¬ 
plete  the  company,  a  cat  with  a  litter  of  kittens.  In 
the  morning,  when  we  were  dressing,  we  were  greatly 
annoyed  by  the  women  of  the  house,  and  some  of 
their  neighbors,  coming  to  the  door  to  look  at  the 


60 


BAALBEC. 


strangers ;  appearing  quite  unconscious  that  there 
was  the  slightest  impropriety  in  their  doing  so. 

We  were  but  little  refreshed  by  our  night’s  lodg¬ 
ment,  for  rest  it  could  not  be  called;  and  on  first 
setting  out  on  our  journey  we  suffered  much  from 
the  cold.  Our  route  lay  through  the  plain  of  Bekaa, 
which  is  beautifully  situated  between  the  two  lofty 
mountain  ridges  ;  and  the  snowy  top  of  Hermon  was 
in  our  view  all  day.  In  the  evening  we  arrived  at 
Baalbec ;  and  finding  the  ground  still  too  damp  for 
pitching  our  tent,  we  took  up  our  abode  in  the 
convent. 

Baalbec  is  the  ancient  Heliopolis,  and  the  Baaleth* 
of  Scripture,  built  by  Solomon.  It  contains  the  ruins 
of  magnificent  buildings  in  the  Grecian  style;  but 
when,  or  by  whom,  erected,  is  unknown.  The  re¬ 
mains  of  the  Temple  of  the  Sun  are  a  wonderful 
monument  of  the  power  of  man.  Some  of  the  pillars 
of  the  portico  remain,  which  are  upwards  of  70  feet 
in  height ;  but  the  most  extraordinary  part  of  it  is 
the  great  size  of  the  stones  in  the  sloping  wall 
around  the  raised  platform  on  which  the  temple 
stood.  Many  of  them  are  from  30  to  35  feet  in 
length ;  and  at  one  corner  are  three  enormous 
stones,  each  of  them  about  60  feet  in  length.  There 
is  one  stone  still  lying  in  the  quarry  close  by,  hewn 
out  on  three  sides ;  this  M.  measured,  and  found  it 


*  2  Chron.  viii.  6. 


DAMASCUS. 


61 


of  the  amazing  dimensions  of  665  feet  long,#  by 
13  feet  in  breadth,  and  the  same  in  thickness.  The 
framers  of  these  great  works  doubtless  thought 
that  their  names  would  be  handed  down  to  the  latest 
posterity  ;  but  their  memory  is  perished.  At  present 
not  only  man’s  greatest,  but  even  his  meanest  works, 
outlive  himself ;  but  God  hath  said  that  in  the  days 
when  He  will  “  Rejoice  in  Jerusalem  and  joy  in  his 
people,”  his  chosen  “  Shall  wear  out  the  work  of 
their  hands. ”f 

We  left  Baalbec  on  Friday,  the  5th,  and  arrived 
at  Damascus  about  three  o’clock  in  the  afternoon  of 
the  6th.  The  journey  on  the  second  day  wa's  very 
unpleasant ;  the  heat  was  great ;  the  glare  of  light 
from  the  white  rocks  was  painful  to  the  eyes  ;  and 
the  ascent  up  the  stony  hill,  near  the  city,  steep  and 
difficult.  After  all  these  disagreeables,  one  is  much 
delighted,  on  reaching  the  summit  of  this  hill,  with 
the  first  view  of  Damascus,  as  it  lies  stretched  out 
below,  interspersed  with  trees  and  gardens.  In 
travelling  through  Syria  and  Palestine,  the  aspect  of 
all  around  is  generally  so  cheerless  and  desolate, 
that  any  appearance  of  verdure  and  cultivation  is 
doubly  welcome,  and  strikes  the  eye  by  the  effect 
of  contrast,  in  a  way  the  same  scenery  would  never 


*  I  find  that  Yolney,  quoted  by  Keith,  makes  the  length 
69  feet  2  inches, 
f  Isaiah  lxv.  22, — margin. 

6 


62 


DAMASCUS. 


do  if  seen  in  any  part  of  Europe.  It  is  only  in  thi^ 
way  that  I  can  account  for  the  glowing  descriptions 
given  by  different  travellers,  of  places  that  seemed 
to  me  by  no  means  to  deserve  such  high  eulogiums. 
The  interest  attached  to  this  part  of  the  world  is 
something  very  different  from  beauty  of  scenery,  or 
splendor  of  architecture ;  it  consists  in  its  being  the 
home  of  the  Bible ;  in  every  thing  that  one  sees, 
recalling  to  mind  some  ancient  custom,  and  almost 
every  locality  being  connected  with  some  important 
or  interesting  event. 

Here  I  was  in  Damascus,  the  oldest  existing  city 
in  the  world ;  probably  founded  soon  after  the  dis¬ 
persion  at  Babel.  The  steward  of  Abraham’s  house 
was  “  Eliezer  of  Damascus.”  Amid  all  the  revolu¬ 
tions  of  empires,  and  the  overthrow  of  mighty  cities 
in  the  east  and  in  the  west,  here  stands  Damascus 
still ;  a  city  associated  with  Elisha,  Ahaz,  and  Rezin  ! 
It  existed  before  the  call  of  Abraham,  and  survived 
the  dispersion  of  the  Jewish  nation ;  it  stood  at  the 
coming  of  our  Lord  in  humiliation,  and  may  con¬ 
tinue  till  his  second  coming  in  glory. 

But  its  more  ancient  associations  did  not  long  de¬ 
tain  me  from  meditating  on  its  connection  with  that 
wonderful  man  who  was  rightly  accused  of  “  turning 
the  world  upside  down and  to  whose  instrument¬ 
ality  the  present  state  of  Europe,  as  the  centre  of 
civilization,  may  be  traced.  When  Saul,  “  yet 
breathing  out  threatenings  and  slaughter,”  set  out 


PAUL. - REFLECTIONS. 


63 


on  his  journey  to  Damascus,  he  little  thought  of  the 
mighty  change  that  awaited  him  ere  he  should  reach 
this  ancient  city.  “  As  he  journeyed  he  came  near 
Damascus ;  and  suddenly  there  shined  round  about 
him  a  light  from  heaven ;  and  he  fell  to  the  earth, 
and  heard  a  voice  saying  unto  him,  Saul,  Saul,  why 
persecutest  thou  me  ?”#  The  fierce  persecutor  of 
Jesus  at  once  becomes  His  docile  follower — “  Lord, 
what  wilt  thou  have  me  to  do  ?”  is  the  rule  of  his 
life  from  that  day  forward ;  and  Saul  of  Tarsus  is 
indeed  “  a  new  creature.” 

Such  is  regeneration,  needful  not  only  to  the  open 
opposer  of  religion,  but  to  every  son  of  Adam, — to 
every  possessor  of  that  “  carnal  mind”  which  is 
“  enmity  against  God.”  And  though  we  look  not 
for  a  visible  light  to  shine  around  the  awakened  sin¬ 
ner,  yet  must  the  light  of  the  glorious  gospel  shine 
into  his  heart,  “  to  give  the  light  of  the  knowledge 
of  the  glory  of  God  in  the  face  of  Christ  Jesus  ;”f 
in  order  that  he  may  “  put  off  concerning  the  former 
conversation,  the  old  man,  which  is  corrupt  accord¬ 
ing  to  the  deceitful  lusts,  and  be  renewed  in  the 
spirit  of  his  mind,  and  put  on  the  new  man,  which 
after  God  is  created  in  righteousness  and  true 
holiness.”:}: 

The  teaching  of  our  Lord  and  His  apostles  is  full 
of  this  important  doctrine ;  of  the  necessity  of  this 


*  Acts  ix.  3,  4. 


-j-  2  Cor.  iv.  6. 


t  Eph.  iv.  22 — 24. 


64 


REGENERATION. 


great  change  “  from  darkness  to  light,  and  from  the 
power  of  Satan  unto  God.”  And  yet  there  are  men 
calling  themselves  ministers  of  the  gospel  of  Christ, 
who  represent  this  mighty  change  as  taking  place  in 
an  unconscious  infant,  in  consequence  of  an  outward 
ceremony  !  It  is,  indeed,  a  subtle  device  of  Satan 
to  persuade  men  that  they  are  already  “  members  of 
Christ,  children  of  God,  and  inheritors  of  the  king¬ 
dom  of  heaven,”  while  they  are  yet  in  the  “  gall  of 
bitterness,  and  in  the  bond  of  iniquity.”  While  “the 
whole  head  is  sick,  and  the  whole  heart  faint,”  he 
tells  them  that  they  are  among  “  the  whole,”  who 
need  no  physician ;  and  thus  prevents  them  from 
applying  to  the  Great  Physician,  who  alone  is  able 
to  heal  their  spiritual  disease. 

He  who  has  personally  experienced  this  blessed 
change  is  not  likely  to  imagine  it  took  place  in  his 
baptism,  nor  to  value  himself  on  having  “  kept  the 
white  robe  of  baptism  undefiled  he  knows  what 
sin  is,  and  what  real  purity  of  heart  is,  too  well,  to 
mistake  the  restraints  of  education  and  society  for 
that  “  holiness,  without  which  no  man  shall  see  the 
Lord.”  Rather  will  he  be  disposed  to  exclaim,  as 
Paul  did  on  reviewing  his  state  previous  to  his  con¬ 
version,  “  What  things  were  gain  to  me,  those  I 
counted  loss  for  Christ :  yea,  doubtless,  and  I  count 


*  Pusey  on  Baptism,  p.  53. 


JEWISH  HOUSES. 


65 


all  things  but  loss  for  the  excellency  of  the  know¬ 
ledge  of  Christ  Jesus,  my  Lord.”# 

Damascus,  like  all  other  towns  in  Syria,  is  a  dirty, 
disagreeable  place.  We  took  up  our  abode  in  what 
is  called  a  European  Hotel,  and  flattered  ourselves 
we  should  be  free  from  the  usual  Oriental  annoyance 
of  vermin ;  but  so  far  was  this  from  being  the  case, 
that  our  room  contained  scorpions,  in  addition  to  the 
usual  varieties  of  invaders.  When  I  was  in  Italy,  I 
thought  nothing  could  exceed  the  filth  and  discom¬ 
fort  of  Italian  inns  :  but  a  very  short  sojourn  in  Syria 
led  me  to  see  that  no  part  of  Europe  is  quite  so  low 
in  the  scale  of  cleanliness. 

We  visited  several  of  the  houses  of  the  wealthy 
Jews,  and  were  received  with  the  utmost  kindness 
and  courtesy  by  the  ladies  of  the  family,  the  gen¬ 
tlemen  being  from  home.  Their  houses  are  very 
handsome,  and  are  built  and  furnished  in  the  usual 
eastern  style.  On  entering  the  door  from  the  street, 
you  do  not  go  into  the  house,  but  into  a  large  square 
court,  round  which  the  different  apartments  are 
situated.  In  some  of  these  courts  there  is  a  reservoir 
of  water  in  the  centre,  planted  round  with  orange 
and  lemon  trees.  The  room  in  which  the  ladies  re¬ 
ceived  us  was  large  and  lofty ;  the  ceiling  highly 
ornamented  with  painting  and  gilding,  and  the  walls 
similarly  decorated,  and  hung  with  looking-glasses. 


*  Phil.  iii.  7,  8. 

6* 


66 


JEWISH  LADIES. 


The  lower  end  of  the  room,  into  which  you  first 
enter,  is  paved  with  marble  ;  this  may  occupy  about 
a  third  of  the  apartment :  the  remainder  consists  of  a 
platform  about  a  foot  and  a  half  high,  covered  with 
a  Turkey  carpet,  or,  in  some  instances,  with  fine 
matting.  Round  three  sides  of  this  platform  there  is 
a  farther  elevation,  about  a  foot  or  more  in  height, 
and  about  the  width  of  an  ordinary  sofa,  called  the 
divan;  and  on  this  the  family  and  their  guests  sit, 
or  rather  recline.  The  divan  is  covered  with  damask, 
or  with  the  richest  Persian  carpeting. 

The  dress  of  the  ladies  was  very  splendid ;  they 
wore  loose  eastern  robes  of  silk,  with  a  sort  of  breast¬ 
plate  or  stomacher  covered  with  gold,  and  jewelled 
ornaments  on  their  heads.  Their  manners  were 
affable  and  pleasing.  They  regaled  us  with  coffee 
and  sweetmeats,  with  the  usual  accompaniment  of 
pipes,  or  nargilas.  The  nargila,  which  is  like  the 
Indian  hookah,  consists  of  a  glass  vessel  full  of  water, 
that  stands  on  the  floor,  through  which  the  smoke  is 
made  to  pass ;  it  is  inhaled  through  a  long  flexible 
tube,  having  a  mouthpiece.  I  was  very  awkward  in 
the  use  of  this  machine,  (which  it  would  have  been 
esteemed  very  uncivil  to  decline,)  and  could  not  get 
it  to  smoke  at  all,  which  one  of  the  young  ladies  of 
the  family  perceiving,  with  a  good-humored  smile  at 
my  awkwardness,  took  the  mouthpiece  out  of  my 
hand,  and  after  two  or  three  good  whiffs,  put  it  in 
smoking  trim,  and  returned  it  to  me. 


PERSECUTION  OF  THE  JEWS. 


67 


I  made  inquiries  as  to  the  state  of  female  educa¬ 
tion  among  the  Jews  ;  and  was  surprised  to  find  that 
in  many  of  the  wealthiest  families  the  daughters 
were  unable  to  read.  I  am  surprised  that  Sir  Moses 
Montefiore,  who  takes  such  an  interest  in  our 
brethren,  has  not  effected  some  improvement  in  this 
matter. 

I  must  not  omit  to  mention  one  decoration  of  the 
ladies,  which,  though  in  my  opinion  it  rather  marred 
their  beauty,  yet  afforded  an  interesting  illustration 
of  Scripture.  From  the  outer  corner  of  each  eye  a 
black  line  is  painted  upon  the  cheek,  which  gives 
the  appearance  of  two  slits  or  rents.  This  explains 
Jer.  iv.  30,  “  Though  thou  rendest  thine  eyes*  with 
painting,  in  vain  shalt  thou  make  thyself  fair.” 

These  ladies,  as  well  as  all  the  Jews  I  saw  in 
Damascus,  expressed  their  gratitude  to  the  English 
for  the  kind  interest  they  had  taken  in  the  sufferers 
during  the  recent  persecution.  Most  of  my  readers 
will  remember  that  a  certain  Father  Thomaso,  a 
Roman  Catholic  priest,  suddenly  disappeared ;  and 
the  Romanists  at  Damascus  immediately  accused  the 
Jews  of  having  murdered  him,  in  order  to  obtain  his 
blood  for  the  celebration  of  the  passover.  It  was  in 
vain  the  Jews  protested  their  innocence,  and  that 
they  never  use  blood  at  the  passover.  Many  of  the 


*  This  is  the  literal  translation  of  the  Hebrew ;  see  the 
margin. 


69 


PERSECUTION  OF  THE  JEWS. 


most  wealthy  and  respectable  Jews  were  cast  into 
prison,  and  inhumanly  flogged  in  order  to  induce 
them  to  confess  their  guilt.  Not  content  with  this, 
the  government  had  even  the  barbarity  to  cause  a 
number  of  the  Jewish  children  to  be  flogged,  in  the 
expectation  of  extorting  some  confession  from  them. 
Four  Jews  died  in  consequence  of  this  torture  and 
imprisonment ;  and  it  is  probable  that  many  others 
would  have  fallen  victims  to  Popish  and  Mohamme¬ 
dan  cruelty,  had  it  not  been  for  the  interest  taken  by 
the  English  nation  at  large  in  the  persecuted  Jews, 
and  the  efforts  of  Sir  Moses  Montefiore. 

This  is  by  no  means  a  solitary  instance  of  the 
persecuting  spirit  the  Romanists  manifest  against 
the  Jews  in  the  East ;  several  instances  of  similar 
attempts  to  criminate  the  Jews  were  mentioned  to 
me,  from  which  I  select  only  one.  A  young  woman, 
a  Roman  Catholic,  disappeared  from  Sidon,andher 
relatives  and  the  other  Romanists  began  immediately 
to  accuse  the  Jews  of  having  murdered  her.  Pro¬ 
videntially  for  my  poor  brethren,  the  Prussian  Vice- 
Consul  at  Beyrout  made  some  investigation  into  the 
matter,  and  discovered  that  she  had  eloped  with  a 
priest!  I  must  once  and  again  remind  Christians 
of  what  I  do  not  think  they  take  sufficiently  into 
account, — the  effect  which  such  exhibitions  of  the 
Christian  religion  (falsely  so  called)  have  upon  the 
minds  of  the  Jews.  They  are  persecuted  both  by 
the  Greek  and  Romish  churches ;  and  these  two 


DAMASCUS. 


69 


churches  are  the  chief  specimens  of  Christianity 
that  in  the  East  are  presented  before  them.  Can 
any  thing,  therefore,  be  more  grossly  absurd  than 
that  members  of  a  Protestant  church,  who  go  to  the 
East  for  the  express  purpose  of  converting  the  Jews 
to  Christianity,  should  seek  in  any  way  to  assimilate 
themselves  to  those  corrupt  churches,  instead  of  using 
every  endeavor  to  show  that  they  are  in  all  respects 
different  from  them  !* 

We  spent  one  Lord’s  day  in  Damascus,  and  it 
was  melancholy  to  think  that  in  the  city  where  Paul 
first  “  preached  the  faith  which  once  he  destroyed,” 
there  was  not  a  Christian  church  with  which  wo 
could  worship.  I  trust  there  are  many  of  those, 
who,  for  the  sake  of  supporting  a  theory,  maintain 
that  the  Romish  and  Greek  churches,  though  cor¬ 
rupt,  are  still  churches  of  Christ,  who  would  shrink 
from  acting  consistently  with  this  profession  by  join¬ 
ing  in  their  worship,  even  where  no  other  offered. 
For  my  own  part,  I  do  not  hesitate  to  say  that  I  do 
not  reckon  them  churches  of  Christ  at  all ;  they  are 
heathenism,  mixed  up  with  certain  Christian  dogmas, 
that  become  completely  neutralized  by  the  mixture. 


*  Since  the  above  was  written,  the  Rev.  Messrs.  Gra¬ 
ham  and  Allen  have  been  sent  by  the  Free  Church  of 
Scotland,  as  missionaries  to  the  Jews  in  Damascus.  I  re¬ 
joice  to  think  that  from  these  excellent  men  my  brethren 
will  hear  Gospel  truth  in  all  its  purity. 


70 


PITCHING  THE  TENT. 


The  one  Mediator  between  God  and  man,  the  one 
only  mode  of  a  sinner’s  justification, — all,  in  short, 
that  is  peculiarly  Christian,  is  virtually  denied  in 
these  churches.  In  addition  to  this,  the  mode  of 
worship  in  the  Greek  church  is  so  absolutely  foolish, 
that  I  could  much  more  easily  join  in  the  worship 
of  a  Jewish  synagogue. 

In  these  circumstances,  it  is  delightful  to  realize 
the  promise  of  our  gracious  Saviour,  that  even  when 
there  are  but  two  met  together  in  His  name,  He  is 
with  them. 

We  left  Damascus  on  the  morning  of  May  9th. 
The  road  was  dreary  and  desolate ;  and  after  a  ride 
of  eight  hours,  we  arrived  at  the  village  of  Sasa.  It 
presented  the  usual  forlorn  appearance  of  an  Arab 
village,  and  its  wild  inhabitants  looked  like  savages. 

Here  for  the  first  time  we  pitched  our  tent.  The 
tents  used  in  the  East  differ  little  from  those  that  are 
common  in  this  country,  only  that,  instead  of  being 
white,  or  nearly  so,  they  are  composed  of  alternate 
stripes  of  yellow  and  blue,  or  some  other  contrasted 
colors.  The  spot  where  we  pitched  was  very 
unpleasant,  our  flooring  being  composed  of  dry 
mud ;  but  we  could  get  no  better  near  the  village. 
It  was  very  interesting  to  me  thus  to  “  dwell  in  a 
tent,”  like  my  forefathers.  It  excites  a  lively  re¬ 
membrance  that  “  here  we  have  no  continuing  city, 
but  seek  one  to  come ;”  even  a  “  city  that  hath 
foundations,”  as  opposed  to  an  assemblage  of  tents 


SASA.  KUNEITIRAH. 


71 


pitched  on  the  surface  of  the  ground.  It  was  de¬ 
lightful  to  reflect,  that  the  same  God  who  watched 
over  my  fathers  in  all  their  journeys  is  my  God, 
who  will  guide  me  by  His  counsel  through  all  my 
pilgrimage  here,  and  afterwards  receive  me  into 
glory. 

In  the  evening,  as  we  sat  in  our  tent,  we  heard  a 
loud  crying  and  howling,  as  of  some  one  in  great 
distress.  We  ran  out  to  see  what  was  the  matter, 
and  found  the  noise  proceeded  from  a  Bedouin, 
whom  our  muleteers  had  bound  hand  and  foot ;  they 
found  him  lurking  about  our  tent,  and  supposed  he 
came  there  to  steal.  At  our  desire  they  let  him  go, 
and  we  had  no  further  molestation. 

The  next  morning  we  struck  our  tent  at  an  early 
hour,  and  set  out  on  our  journey.  The  ride  to-day 
was  rather  more  agreeable,  there  being  some  little 
appearance  of  vegetation  occasionally  to  relieve  the 
eye.  A  few  dwarf  oaks  and  thorn  bushes  were  a 
welcome  sight  amid  the  general  desolation.  About 
four  o’clock,  p.  m.,  we  arrived  at  the  village  of  Kunei- 
tirah,  if  village  it  may  be  called,  consisting  only  of 
a  few  mud  hovels  and  Bedouin  tents.  It  is  rather 
prettily  situated,  and  is  surrounded  by  cultivated 
fields,  and  flocks  of  sheep  and  goats  feeding.  It  is 
impossible  to  give  an  idea  of  the  pleasure  derived 
from  the  sight  of  a  little  cultivation  in  this  barren 
land,  on  which  the  curse  of  God  so  evidently  rests. 
“  He  turneth  rivers  into  a  wilderness,  and  the  water 


72 


VISIT  FROM  BEDOUINS. 


springs  into  dry  ground ;  a  fruitful  land  into  barren¬ 
ness,  for  the  wickedness  of  them  that  dwell  therein.”* 
This  has  been  fulfilled  to  the  very  letter ;  shall  we 
not  then  confidently  expect  the  great  and  mighty 
change  both  on  the  land  and  the  people,  that  is  so 
frequently  predicted  ?  “  Is  it  not  yet  a  very  little 

while  that  Lebanon  shall  be  turned  into  a  fruitful 
field,  and  the  fruitful  field  shall  be  esteemed  as  a 
forest?  And  in  that  day  shall  the  deaf  hear  the 
words  of  the  book,  and  the  eyes  of  the  blind  shall 
see  out  of  obscurity,  and  out  of  darkness.”f 

After  our  tent  was  pitched,  a  number  of  Bedouins 
came  and  sat  down  at  our  tent  door,  looking  at  us 
with  much  curiosity  and  interest.  My  friend  M. 
took  out  his  six-barrelled  pistol  for  their  amusement, 
and  fired  off  the  percussion  caps.  They  listened  to 
the  successive  reports  with  astonishment,  and  lifting 
up  their  hands,  said — “  It  is  from  heaven.”  Such 
are  their  notions  of  a  heavenly  gift !  I  happened  to 
make  use  of  a  Pisa  match,  which  is  ignited  by  merely 
pinching  one  end  of  it.  This  also  delighted  them. 
“  It  is  magic,”  they  cried  out. 

The  next  morning  we  again  set  out  at  an  early 
hour.  The  scenery  was  more  agreeable  and  the 
soil  more  fertile,  than  any  we  had  hitherto  seen  in 
this  quarter.  It  was  melancholy  to  see  thousands 
of  acres  lying  waste,  and  the  country  lonely  and 


*  Psalm  cvii.  33,  34. 


f  Isaiah  xxix.  17, 18. 


LAKE  OF  TIBERIAS. 


73 


depopulated.  “  If  ye  walk  contrary  to  me,”  said 
the  Lord  to  my  forefathers,  “  your  highways  shall 
be  desolate.”*  “  I  scattered  them  with  a  whirlwind 
among  all  the  nations  whom  they  knew  not.  Thus 
the  land  was  desolate  after  them,  that  no  man  passed 
through  nor  returned,  for  they  laid  the  pleasant  land 
desolate.”!  The  people  to  whom  the  Lord  gave  it 
are  far  away,  and  the  few  strangers  that  are  scattered 
up  and  down  in  it  do  not  seem  at  home.  It  yet  waits 
for  the  time  when  “  He  that  scattered  Israel  will 
gather  him,  and  keep  him  as  a  shepherd  doth  his 
flock;”!  and  then  will  the  promise  be  fulfilled,  “Thy 
waste  and  thy  desolate  places,  and  the  land  of  thy 
destruction,  shall  even  now  be  too  narrow  by  reason 
of  the  inhabitants,  and  they  that  swallowed  thee  up 
shall  be  far  away.”§ 

Afler  riding  about  four  hours,  we  came  in  sight 
of  the  Lake  of  Tiberias.  It  was  deeply  interesting 
to  behold  a  spot  so  intimately  connected  with  the 
history  of  our  blessed  Lord.  This  is  that  “  sea  of 
Galilee,  which  is  the  sea  of  Tiberias, ”||  and  which 
is  elsewhere  called  the  Lake  of  Gennesaret.1T  On 
the  borders  of  this  lake  stood  the  towns  of  Bethsaida 
and  Capernaum ;  and  its  “  mountains  and  desert 
places”  were  often  resorted  to  by  Jesus  for  the  pur¬ 
pose  of  private  devotion. 


*  Levit.  xxvi.  21,  22.  f  Zech.  vii.  14.  \  Jer.  xxxi.  10. 

§  Isaiah  xlix.  19.  ||  John  vi.  1.  H  Luke  v.  1 

7 


74 


RIVER  JORDAN. 


After  travelling  an  hour  and  a  half  more,  we 
crossed  the  river  Jordan,  by  the  Jisr  Benat  Yacob, 
that  is,  the  bridge  of  the  daughters  of  Jacob.  Tra¬ 
dition  says  that  this  is  the  place  where  Jacob  crossed 
the  Jordan  on  his  return  from  Mesopotamia,  and 
where  his  gratitude  was  called  forth  at  the  remem¬ 
brance  of  all  the  mercies  the  Lord  had  bestowed 
upon  him.  “  With  my  staff  I  passed  over  this 
Jordan,  and  now  I  am  become  two  bands.”* 

Hitherto  we  had  been  only  on  the  east  of  Jordan, 
in  that  portion  of  the  land  that  was  the  inheritance 
of  the  two  tribes  and  a  half,  but  now  we  were  really 
within  the  promised  land,  “  the  good  land  that  is 
beyond  Jordan.”  Here  we  rested  for  an  hour,  and 
took  our  midday  meal,  drinking,  for  the  first  time, 
of  the  water  of  Jordan.  As  we  proceeded  on  our 
journey,  we  met  several  camels  and  asses  laden 
with  goods,  which  strongly  reminded  us  of  Scripture 
times. 

Finding  we  could  not  reach  the  town  of  Tiberias 
that  evening,  we  pitched  our  tent  near  the  lake, 
between  the  supposed  sites  of  Bethsaida  and  Caper¬ 
naum.  Of  these  two  cities,  against  which  our  Lord 
denounced  a  “  woe,”  not  a  vestige  remains,  and  the 
places  where  they  once  stood  are  a  mere  matter  of 
conjecture.  As  I  meditated  on  that  sure  word  of 
prophecy,  and  saw  its  exact  fulfilment,  I  could  not 


*  Gen.  xxxii.  10. 


REFLECTIONS. 


75 


help  applying  the  like  warning  to  Christendom  at  the 
present  day  ;  and  of  all  parts  of  Christendom,  to 
highly  favored  England.  No  other  land  possesses 
so  much  of  gospel  light ;  yet  how  many  therein  are 
hating  that  light,  and  refusing  to  walk  in  it  1 

This  was  an  interesting  resting  place ;  as,  though 
the  precise  sites  cannot  be  ascertained,  there  is  no 
doubt  that  in  this  immediate  neighborhood  were 
“the  cities  wherein  most  of  His  mighty  works  were 
done,”*  who  came  to  be  “  a  light  to  lighten  the 
Gentiles,  and  the  glory  of  His  people,  Israel.”  Yet, 
alas !  Israel  is  not  yet  gathered,  and  of  the  Gentiles 
there  is  but  a  little  band  that  are  His  followers.  As 
I  walked  by  the  lake,  one  of  the  first  objects  that 
caught  my  eye,  was  an  Arab  Mussulman  praying, 
with  his  face  towards  Mecca.  How  wonderful,  that 
in  the  mysterious  providence  of  God  the  religion  of 
Mahomet,  the  false  prophet,  has  been  permitted  to 
spread  far  more  widely  than  the  religion  of  His  well- 
beloved  Son  !  “  Go  into  all  the  world,  and  proclaim 

the  good  news  to  every  creature,”  was  the  command 
of  Jesus  to  His  disciples.  The  first  disciples  obeyed, 
and  many  were  added  to  the  church.  Satan,  finding 
his  empire  invaded,  accomplished  his  highest  device, 
that  of  getting  the  world  introduced  into  that  which 
was  called  the  Church  of  Christ,  and  thus  he  brought 
in  the  confusion  that  has  continued  in  the  visible 


*  Mat.  xi.  20. 


76 


LAKE  OF  TIBERIAS. 


church,  even  to  the  present  time.  The  good  news 
ceased  to  be  proclaimed ;  man’s  inventions  made  the 
word  of  God  of  none  effect,  and  the  dominion  of 
error  prevailed  far  and  wide. 

And  the  followers  of  the  false  prophet  now  rule  in 
the  land  that  God  gave  to  his  chosen  people ;  the 
land  where  Jesus  dwelt,  and  communicated  the  light 
of  truth,  and  from  whence  He  sent  forth  His  disciples 
into  all  the  world.  When  we  look  at  the  unbroken 
ranks  of  Mahometanism,  and  remember  how  few  are 
disposed  to  listen  to  that  which  involves  the  penalty 
of  a  violent  death,  (it  being  a  capital  crime  in  a  Ma¬ 
hometan  to  forsake  his  religion,)  we  should  be  dis¬ 
posed  to  despair  of  any  better  state  of  things,  were 
it  not  for  the  sure  word  of  prophecy  on  which  God 
hath  caused  us  to  hope, — “  I  have  sworn  by  Myself, 
the  word  is  gone  out  of  my  mouth  in  righteousness, 
and  shall  not  return,  that  unto  Me  every  knee  shall 
bow,  every  tongue  shall  swear.”* 

The  lake  of  Tiberias,  where  several  of  our  Lord’s 
disciples  followed  their  calling  as  fishermen,  still 
abounds  in  fish.  We  saw  a  man  wade  into  the 
water  a  little  way,  and  throw  in  a  small  hand-net, 
which  he  soon  brought  out  filled  with  fish.  I  thought 
of  Jesus,  who,  when  “  walking  by  the  sea  of  Galilee, 
saw  two  brethren,  Simon  called  Peter,  and  Andrew 
his  brother,  casting  a  net  into  the  sea,  for  they  were 


*  Isaiah  xlv.  23. 


STORM  ON  THE  LAKE. 


77 


fishers.  And  He  saith  unto  them,  follow  Me,  and  I 
will  make  you  fishers  of  men.”*  Peter  the  humble 
fisherman,  became  Peter  the  humble  and  self-denying 
apostle.  My  mind  involuntarily  wandered  to  his 
professed  successor,  with  his  Swiss  guard  and  regal 
pomp,  and  to  the  statue  that  bears  his  name,  to 
which  idolatrous  honors  are  paid.  What  would 
have  been  the  feelings  of  this  godly  “  elder,”  had  it 
been  revealed  to  him  that  he  should  in  after  ages  re¬ 
ceive  the  homage  due  to  Christ  alone ! 

On  this  side  of  the  lake  there  are  a  few  trees  to 
be  seen,  a  rare  and  welcome  sight  in  Palestine ;  we 
were  also  much  struck  with  the  quantity  of  rhodo¬ 
dendrons  of  large  size,  and  in  full  flower,  that  grew 
near  where  we  had  pitched  our  tent.  And  when 
some  of  the  fish  we  had  just  seen  caught  were  broiled 
for  our  repast,  the  scenes  of  Scripture  times  came 
vividly  before  us. 

When  we  first  arrived  at  the  lake,  it  was  perfectly 
calm ;  but  shortly  after  our  tent  was  pitched  the 
wind  suddenly  arose,  and  blew  so  strongly  that  we 
had  some  difficulty  in  keeping  the  tent  from  being 
blown  away.  The  surface  of  the  lake  rose  in  large 
waves,  so  that  we  could  quite  understand  the  gospel 
narrative,  that  when  “  Jesus  went  into  a  ship  with 
his  disciples,  there  came  down  a  storm  of  wind  on 
the  lake ;  and  they  were  filled  with  water,  and  were 
in  jeopardy.”f 


*  Mat.  iv.  18,  19. 


f  Luke  viii.  22,  23. 


78 


TOWN  OF  TIBERIAS. 


In  the  morning  we  bathed  in  the  clear  waters  of 
the  lake,  and  felt  much  refreshed.  We  set  out  to¬ 
wards  Tiberias  about  half-past  six  o’clock,  and 
arrived  there  soon  after  eleven.  The  town  looked 
a  heap  of  ruins.  It  is  situated  close  to  the  lake,  and 
was  formerly  surrounded,  except  on  the  side  next 
the  water,  by  a  high  wall,  but  the  great  earthquake 
of  1837  threw  it  down,  as  well  as  most  of  the 
houses.  Besides  this  calamity,  it  was  visited  by  the 
plague  about  two  years  since,  and  many  of  the  in¬ 
habitants  died  of  it. 

We  took  up  our  abode  in  the  house  of  a  Jew,  and 
in  the  course  of  the  day  I  saw  and  conversed  with 
many  of  my  poor  brethren.  The  Jewish  population 
suffered  severely  in  the  plague,  nearly  a  third  of 
them,  according  to  the  information  of  our  host, 
having  died  of  it.  Those  that  remain  are  generally 
very  poor,  the  greater  number  of  them  living  in  tents. 
Tiberias  is  one  of  the  four  cities  which  are  reckoned 
holy  by  the  Jews,  the  other  three  being  Jerusalem, 
Saphet,  and  Hebron.  The  Jewish  population  of  these 
cities  is  on  this  account  replenished  from  time  to  time 
with  Jews  from  Europe,  chiefly  from  Germany  and 
Russia,  who  come  to  live,  or,  in  many  instances,  to 
die,  in  one  of  the  holy  cities. 

In  the  evening  vre  took  a  wralk  towards  the  little 
assemblage  of  tents  that  forms  the  chief  portion  of 
the  Jewish  quarter.  It  was  Friday  evening,  the 
commencement  of  the  Jewish  Sabbath.  We  heard 


JEWS  IN  TIBERIAS. 


79 


in  every  direction  the  voice  of  prayer;  they  had 
just  returned  from  the  synagogue,  and  were  pro¬ 
nouncing  the  prayers  on  the  cup  of  blessing  at  their 
evening  meal.  We  saw  one  venerable-looking  old 

o  o 

rabbi,  dressed  in  a  white  robe,  and  having  a  white 
beard,  and  severals  other  rabbis  with  him,  who  were 
strangers  that  had  come  to  spend  their  Sabbath  in 
Tiberias.  He  performed  the  ceremony  with  a  great 
deal  of  solemnity  and  feeling  ;  and  it  was  interesting 
to  see  him  consecrating  the  bread  before  he  cut  it  in 
pieces  and  divided  it  among  the  family  and  guests. 
I  could  not  help  crying  unto  the  Lord,  speedily  to 
make  known  to  poor  Israel  that  Bread  of  life  that 
came  down  from  heaven,  of  which  if  a  man  eat  he 
shall  never  die. 

The  lake  of  Tiberias  is  about  twelve  miles  long, 
and  six  miles  broad,  at  its  widest  part.  It  is  sur¬ 
rounded  by  hills  ;  in  some  places  these  rise  abruptly 
from  the  water,  and  in  others  retire  further  back, 
leaving  some  level  ground  by  the  side  of  the  lake. 
The  river  Jordan  may  be  said  to  run  through  it,  as 
it  enters  it  on  the  north,  and  issues  from  it  again  at 
the  southern  extremity  ;  taking  its  course  from  thence 
to  the  Dead  Sea.  The  town  of  Tiberias  is  situated 
on  the  western  side  of  the  lake,  as  was  also  Caper¬ 
naum.  Whenever  our  Saviour  is  spoken  of  as  being 
by  the  sea-side,  or  as  crossing  the  sea,  this  locality 
is  meant.  It  may  therefore  be  supposed  how  deeply 
interesting  it  is  to  the  Christian  to  feel  that  he  is 


80 


TIBERIAS. 


really  in  the  very  place  where  his  beloved  Lord 
dwelt,  and  taught,  and  wrought  miracles.  In  those 
places  that  have  only  traditional  authority  to  rest 
upon,  one  has  always  the  feeling  that  this  may  be 
the  spot,  or  it  may  not ;  and  this  doubt  destroys  the 
interest ;  but  the  grand  features  of  nature  are  un¬ 
changeable,  and  in  looking  on  the  sea  of  Galilee  you 
know  that  you  behold  the  very  lake  which  Jesus  so 
often  crossed  on  errands  of  mercy,  on  the  surface 
of  which  He  walked,  and  the  waves  whereof  He  re¬ 
buked  and  stilled  into  a  calm.  On  looking  across 
from  Tiberias  you  know  that  you  see  the  country 
of  the  Gadarenes,  where  He  cast  out  the  legion  of 
unclean  spirits.  “  Being  told  that  on  the  coast  di¬ 
rectly  opposite,  where  the  hills  seemed  very  steep, 
and  close  upon  the  water,  there  were  many  tombs 
cut  out  of  the  rocks,  our  desire  was  excited  more 
than  ever  to  cross  the  lake,  for  we  were  sure  that  the 
opposite  side  was  *  the  country  of  the  Gadarenes, 
which  is  over  against  Galilee.’  From  a  comparison 
of  all  the  circumstances,  it  seemed  likely  that  the 
scene  of  the  amazing  miracle  wrought  upon  the  man 
possessed  by  legion  was  directly  opposite,  and  that 
the  steep  place  of  which  they  spoke  might  possibly 
be  the  hill  down  which  the  herd  of  swine  ran  violently 
into  the  sea.”* 


*  Narrative  of  a  Mission  of  Enquiry  to  the  Jews  from 
the  Church  of  Scotland. 


WANT  OF  MEDICAL  AID. 


81 


On  the  same  eastern  side  of  the  lake  also  was  the 
“  desert  place”  where  our  Lord  miraculously  fed  the 
multitude.  Alas  !  how  desert  are  all  the  places 
there  now  !  I  thought  of  the  boats  of  the  fishermen 
of  Bethsaida  and  Capernaum,  and  of  the  “  other 
boats”  that  came  from  Tiberias,  as  I  looked  on  the 
wide  expanse  of  the  lake,  where  not  a  single  boat  is 
to  be  seen.  We  were  told  there  is  only  one  boat  on 
the  whole  lake,  but  we  did  not  see  even  this  one. 
“  I  will  make  ^y our  cities  waste,  and  I  will  bring  the 
land  into  desolation.”* 

Our  Jewish  landlord  was  suffering  severely  from 
the  common  disease  of  the  country,  ophthalmia.  On 
the  evening  we  arrived  I  administered  some  simple 
remedies  to  him,  and  in  the  morning  he  was  so  much 
better  that  he  knew  not  how  to  express  his  gratitude. 
He  kissed  my  hand  many  times,  and  thanked  me  in 
the  most  fervent  manner.  This  led  me  to  see  how 
desirable  it  is,  since  the  gift  of  healing  has  ceased  in 
the  Christian  Church,  that  every  missionary  station 
should  have  a  medical  man  attached  to  it,  that  those 
who  come  to  introduce  the  religion  of  Jesus  may 
imitate  him  as  far  as  they  can  in  going  about  healing 
all  manner  of  sickness.  Where  the  two  can  be 
united  in  one  person  it  is  better  still,  as  the  medical 
missionary  can  obtain  access  where  the  visits  of 


*  Levit.  xxvi.  31,  32. 


82 


MOUNT  TABOR. 


another  missionary  would  not  be  received.*  It  is 
very  melancholy  to  see  the  ravages  of  disease  in 
Syria,  in  cases  where  there  is  every  reason  to  be¬ 
lieve  timely  medical  aid  would  effect  a  cure.  I  was 
much  struck  in  Damascus  to  see  so  many  persons, 
in  the  prime  of  life,  totally  blind.  In  that  large  city 
there  is  not  a  single  medical  man. 

On  the  morning  of  Saturday,  May  13,  we  left 
Tiberias  for  Nazareth.  As  we  drew  near  Mount 
Tabor,  we  sent  on  the  servants  with  the  luggage, 
and  took  the  guide  we  had  hired  at  Tiberias  to  con- 
duct  us  to  the  top  of  it.  After  we  had  ascended  the 
mountain  a  little  way,  we  found  the  place  to  which 
he  had  brought  us  steep,  rugged,  and  all  but  im¬ 
passable  ;  and  we  then  discovered  that  our  guide,  like 
too  many  who  take  on  themselves  the  office  of  re¬ 
ligious  guides,  knew  nothing  of  the  way  in  which 
he  professed  to  lead  us,  never  having  ascended  the 
mountain  himself.  We  had  therefore  nothing  for  it 
but  to  clamber  up  to  the  top  the  best  way  we  could, 
which  at  length  we  succeeded  in  doing. 


*  A  society  has  lately  been  organized  in  London,  called 
the  “Syrian  Medical  Aid  Association,”  for  the  purpose 
of  sending  pious  physicians  to  Syria,  who  may  minister 
both  to  soul  and  body.  We  had  much  intercourse  with 
their  excellent  agent,  Dr.  Kerns,  at  Beyrout.  It  is  to  be 
hoped  that  British  liberality  will  enable  them  soon  to  in¬ 
crease  the  number  of  their  agents. 


VIEW  FROM  MOUNT  TABOR. 


93 


Mount  Tabor  is  a  detached  mountain,  rising  about 
a  thousand  feet  above  the  plain.  It  has,  ever  since 
the  fourth  century,  had  the  reputation  of  being  the 
mount  of  transfiguration  ;  but  this  could  not  be  the 
case,  as  there  is  abundant  evidence  from  history  that 
in  the  time  of  our  Lord  the  summit  of  Tabor  was 
occupied  by  a  fortified  city,  and  therefore  was  not  a 
spot  to  which  Jesus  would  lead  his  disciples  with  the 
view  of  being  “  apart  by  themselves.”  The  ruins 
of  the  city  are  still  to  be  seen  on  the  top  of  the 
mountain.  Yet  the  legend  attached  to  it  has  always 
made  it  resorted  to  by  travellers  ;  and  if  they  cannot 
persuade  themselves  that  it  is  really  “  the  holy 
mount,”  they  at  least  enjoy  an  extensive  view  from 
the  summit,  of  places  familiar  and  interesting  to 
every  reader  of  Scripture.  The  mountains  of  Ba« 
shan  and  Gilead  appear  in  the  east  and  south-east ; 
in  the  south  are  the  mountains  of  Gilboa,  and  on  the 
west  Carmel.  The  sight  of  these  naturally  recalled 
to  my  mind  the  glorious  promise  made  by  God,  of 
the  restoration  and  conversion  of  my  dear  brethren, 
— “  I  will  bring  Israel  again  to  his  habitation,  and 
he  shall  feed  on  Carmel  and  Bashan,  and  his  soul 
shall  be  satisfied  upon  Mount  Ephraim  and  Gilead. 
In  those  days,  and  in  that  time,  saith  the  Lord,  the 
iniquity  of  Israel  shall  be  sought  for,  and  there  shall 
be  none  ;  and  the  sins  of  Judah,  and  they  shall  not 
be  found ;  for  I  will  pardon  them  whom  I  reserve.”* 


*  Jer.i.  19,  20. 


84 


VIEW  FROM  MOUNT  TAEOR. 


Mount  Tabor,  though  not  the  mount  of  transfigu- 
ration,  is  not  devoid  of  interesting  Scripture  recollec¬ 
tions.  It  was  here  that  Deborah  and  Barak  assem¬ 
bled  the  ten  thousand  warriors,  by  whom  Sisera  was 
discomfited.  Through  the  plain  of  Esdraelon,  which 
lies  to  the  west  and  south-west  of  Tabor,  flows 
“  that  ancient  river,  the  river  Kishon,”  celebrated  in 
the  triumphal  song  of  Deborah  and  Barak.* 

To  the  south  of  Tabor  lies  Endor,  where  Saul  re¬ 
sorted  to  consult  the  woman  who  had  a  familiar 
spirit ;  and  still  further  south  are  the  mountains  of 
Gilboa,  on  which  that  unhappy  king  and  his  sons 
fell.  Not  far  from  Endor  is  the  village  of  Nain, 
where  Christ  raised  the  widow’s  son. 

Feeling  much  oppressed  with  thirst  from  the  heat 
and  fatigue  of  our  ascent,  we  anxiously  sought  for 
some  water  to  refresh  us.  At  length  our  guide 
found  a  very  deep  well,  and  with  some  difficulty 
contrived,  by  tying  a  stone  to  my  leathern  bottle,  to 
bring  up  some  water  from  it.  We  felt  much  re¬ 
freshed  by  it,  and  thought  it  so  precious  that  we 
were  afraid  lest  a  drop  should  be  wasted.  I  realized 
the  peculiar  appropriateness  of  the  figure  so  often 
used  in  Scripture, — “  My  soul  thirsteth  for  thee  ;  my 
flesh  longeth  for  thee  in  a  dry  and  thirsty  land, 
where  no  water  is.”f  Would  that  our  longing  after 


•  Judges  v.  21. 


f  Psalm  Ixiii.  1. 


NAZARETH. 


85 


the  sensible  presence  of  God  were  a  feeling  as  real 
and  intense  as  the  thirst  of  the  flesh ! 

After  spending  about  two  hours  on  the  summit  of 
Tabor,  we  again  descended,  and  proceeded  on  our 
way  to  Nazareth,  which  we  reached  soon  after  4, 
p.  m.  The  attendants  having  arrived  some  hours 
before  us,  had  pitched  our  tent  in  a  fig  orchard,  a 
pleasant,  open  place,  outside  the  town. 

“  The  town  of  Nazareth  lies  upon  the  western 
side  of  a  narrow,  oblong  basin.  The  houses  stand 
on  the  lower  part  of  the  slope  of  the  western  hill, 
which  rises  steep  and  high  above  them.  The  name 
of  Nazareth  (Arabic,  en-Nasirah)  is  found  in  Scrip¬ 
ture  only  in  the  New  Testament.  The  place  is 
mentioned  neither  in  the  Old  Testament  nor  in  Jose¬ 
phus,  and  was  apparently  a  small  and  unimportant 
village.  ‘  Can  there  any  good  thing  come  out  of 
Nazareth  V  is  a  question  implying  any  thing  but  re¬ 
spect  ;  and  the  appellation  of  Nazarenes  was  in  like 
manner  given  to  the  first  Christians  in  scorn.  Yet 
to  the  present  day  the  name  for  Christians  in  Arabic 
continues  to  be  en-Nusara ,  that  is,  Nazarenes.”* 

“And  when  they  had  performed  all  things  accord¬ 
ing  to  the  law  of  the  Lord,  they  returned  into  Gali¬ 
lee,  into  their  own  city  Nazareth.  And  the  Child 
grew,  and  waxed  strong  in  spirit,  filled  with  wis- 


*  Robinson’s  Biblical  Researches  in  Palestine,  Yol.  Ill* 
p.  195—6. 


8 


86 


NAZARETH. - REFLECTIONS. 


dom.”  “  And  He  went  down  with  them,  and  came 
to  Nazareth,  and  was  subject  unto  them.”* 

I  cannot  convey  an  adequate  idea  of  my  feelings 
on  finding  myself  at  Nazareth  ;  I  could  hardly  real¬ 
ize  that  I  was  in  the  very  place  where  the  Saviour 
of  the  world,  Jesus  of  Nazareth,  lived  for  thirty 
years.  I  know  not  how  others  feel,  but  to  myself 
it  is  much  more  difficult  to  realize  that  Christ  is 
really  man,  than  that  He  is  really  God ;  it  is  easier 
to  contemplate  Him  “  exalted  at  God’s  right  hand  to 
be  a  prince  and  Saviour,”  as  one  to  whom  “  all 
power  is  given  in  heaven  and  in  earth,”  than  to 
view  Him  as  being  in  all  respects  a  brother  man.  It 
seems  to  exceed  our  belief  that  He  who  from  all 
eternity  “  was  with  God,  and  was  God,”  really  be¬ 
came  a  man,  and  lived  upwards  of  thirty  years  on 
this  very  earth,  mingling  familiarly  with  other  men, 
suffering  all  the  evils  of  poverty,  and  the  trials  that 
arise  from  intercourse  with  the  ignorant  and  the  de¬ 
praved  ;  “  enduring  the  contradiction  of  sinners 
against  himself!” 

The  Holy  Spirit  has  not  seen  fit  to  record  much 
of  the  life  of  Jesus  during  the  thirty  years  He  lived 
previous  to  His  entering  on  His  public  career ;  there 
is  not  a  single  incident  of  His  life  given  from  the 
time  He  was  twelve  years  old  until  He  was  thirty. 
But  in  those  psalms  where  David  was  carried  by  the 


*  Luke  ii.  39, 40,  51. 


NAZARETH. - REFLECTIONS.  87 

Spirit  of  God  beyond  his  own  feelings  and  sufferings 
to  those  of  Christ,  we  have  some  glimpses  of  the 
exercises  of  His  holy  soul,  while  living  in  close  con¬ 
tact  with  sinful  men.  John  the  Baptist  prepared  for 
his  ministry  by  a  life  of  retirement  in  the  wilder¬ 
ness  ;  but  He  whom  it  behoved  to  be  made  in  all 
things  like  unto  His  brethren,  that  He  might  be  a 
merciful  and  faithful  High  Priest,  was  trained  in  the 
domestic  circle ;  participated  in  family  affections, 
and  cares,  and  duties.  He  “  was  subject”  to  His 
mother  and  her  husband ;  He  lived  in  social  inter¬ 
course  with  His  brothers  and  near  relatives.  They 
who  know  the  sufferings  to  which  a  Christian  is  ex¬ 
posed  by  constant  association  with  those  who  are 
not  like-minded  with  him,  may  have  some  perception 
of  the  daily  agony  of  spirit  endured  by  our  blessed 
Lord.  And  that  His  near  relatives  were  not  at  the 
commencement  of  His  ministry  like-minded  with 
Him,  we  are  plainly  told.  “  For  neither  did  His 
brethren  believe  in  Him.”  “  The  world  cannot  hate 
you,”  said  Jesus  to  them ;  “  but  me  it  hateth,  be¬ 
cause  I  testify  of  it  that  the  works  thereof  are  evil.”* 
Doubtless,  when  our  Lord  walked  the  streets  of 
Nazareth,  and  witnessed  the  various  manifestations 
of  the  sin  and  selfishness  of  human  nature,  He  ful¬ 
filled  that  precept  of  the  law, — “  Thou  shalt  in  any 
wise  rebuke  thy  neighbor,  and  not  suffer  sin  upon 
him.”f  And  oh,  to  what  suffering  must  this  have 


*  John  vii.  5,  7- 


j-  Lev.  xix.  17. 


88 


NAZARETH. - REFLECTIONS. 


exposed  Him !  Those  who  dwell  apart  in  their 
“  ceiled  houses,”  carefully  shunning  all  intercourse 
save  with  the  polished  and  refined,  hating  and  de¬ 
spising  the  “  vulgar  rabble,”  can  but  ill  imagine  the 
sufferings  of  Jesus  during  His  years  of  privacy  and 
retirement.  The  restraints  of  education  tend  power¬ 
fully  to  soften  the  manners ;  and  the  artificial  habits 
of  modern  society  produce  that  outward  smoothness 
in  social  intercourse  which  prevents  the  collision  of 
evil  passions,  and  can  even  exhibit  an  interchange 
of  smiles  and  civilities  between  those  whose  hearts 
are  burning  with  hatred  and  envy.  But  it  was  not 
in  the  polished  circle  that  Jesus  spent  his  life  on 
earth ;  the  mean,  the  coarse,  the  vicious,  “  the  pub¬ 
licans  and  sinners,”  were  those  with  whom  He  came 
in  constant  contact.  And  did  he  keep  aloof  from 
them  in  spirit,  though  necessitated  to  mix  with  them 
in  person  ?  Ah  !  no,  He  knew  that  the  meanest 
among  them  was  still  His  brother,  possessed  of 
some  of  the  kindly  affections  and  better  feelings  of 
humanity  ;  He  poured  forth  on  them  His  social  sym¬ 
pathy,  and  sought  theirs  in  return.  “  I  looked  for 
some  to  take  pity,  but  there  was  none ;  and  for  com¬ 
forters,  but  I  found  none.”*  “  But  as  for  Me,  when 
they  were  sick,  My  clothing  was  sackcloth ;  I  hum¬ 
bled  myself  with  fasting ;  I  bowed  down  heavily,  as 
one  that  mourneth  for  his  mother. ”f  But  human 


*  Psalm  lxix.  20. 


f  Psalm  xxxv.  13,  14. 


NAZARETH. - REFLECTIONS.  89 

sympathy  and  affection  were  denied  Him  ;  the  Cap¬ 
tain  of  our  salvation  was  made  perfect  through  suf¬ 
ferings,  that  His  people  in  all  ages  might  feel  that 
there  is  no  sorrow  in  which  He  cannot  sympathize 
with  them  to  the  uttermost.  His  holy  soul  deeply 
felt  this  unkind  treatment ;  He  loved  His  neighbors 
too  well  to  be  able  to  endure  their  injuries  with  cold- 
hearted  indifference,  or  to  repel  them  with  silent  con¬ 
tempt.  He  uttered  His  complaints  to  the  only  ear 
that  was  open  to  them,  even  the  ear  of  His  Father, 
and  our  Father.  “  For  thy  sake  I  have  borne  re¬ 
proach,  shame  hath  covered  my  face.  I  am  become 
a  stranger  unto  my  brethren,  and  an  alien  unto  my 
mother’s  children.  I  made  sackcloth  my  garment, 
and  I  became  a  proverb  to  them.  They  that  sit  in 
the  gate  speak  against  me ;  and  I  was  the  song  of 
the  drunkards.”*  Cutting  reproach  and  ribald  jest¬ 
ing  were  the  response  made  to  the  Saviour’s  yearn¬ 
ing  for  human  sympathy  ! 

These,  and  similar  reflections,  occurred  to  me  as 
I  walked  about  by  moonlight  the  evening  of  our 
arrival  at  Nazareth.  The  next  day  was  Sunday ; 
and  here  again,  though  there  are  three  communities 
professing  to  be  churches  of  Christ,  the  Greek,  the 
Romish,  and  the  Maronite,  there  was  none  which  we  • 
could  recognise  as  a  church  by  worshipping  with 
them.  A  just  description  of  the  present  spiritual 


*  Psalm  lxix.  7,  8,  11,  12: 
8* 


90 


SPIRITUAL  STATE  OF  PALESTINE. 


state  of  Palestine  might  be  given,  by  exactly  revers¬ 
ing  the  description  of  its  former  state,  as  predicted 
by  Isaiah,  and  fulfilled  in  the  time  of  our  Lord’s 
sojourn  on  earth.  We  may  say  with  truth, — “  The 
people  that  have  seen  a  great  light  now  walk  in 
darkness ;  those  upon  whom  the  light  hath  shined 
now  dwell  in  the  land  of  the  shadow  of  death.”  I 
remember  some  years  since,  when  conversing  with 
a  Polish  Jew,  and  explaining  to  him  what  Chris¬ 
tianity  is,  he  said  with  sincere  astonishment, — “  If 
all  this  be  true,  why  do  they  not  send  missionaries 
from  England  to  convert  the  Christians  in  Poland, 
as  well  as  the  Jews  ?  I  am  sure  you  must  know 
that  the  Christians  there  have  no  more  of  the  religion 
you  have  been  telling  me  of  than  the  Jews  have.” 
Any  Jew  in  Palestine  has  a  right  to  put  the  same 
question ;  and  would  be  quite  justified  in  saying, — 
“  If  you  call  that  Christianity,  I  shall  cling  more 
closely  to  Judaism.”  Those  who  wish  to  teach 
Christianity  to  the  Jews,  instead  of  smoothly  com¬ 
mending,  must  boldly  reprove  and  repudiate  the 
spurious  Christianity  of  the  East. 

As  the  morning  advanced,  the  heat  of  the  tent 
became  intolerable  ;  at  half-past  ten  o’clock  the  ther¬ 
mometer  inside  the  tent  was  104,  F.  We  therefore 
went  into  a  room  in  the  Latin  Convent,  where  we 
remained  until  the  cool  of  the  evening.  While  there 
we  read  and  considered  Luke  iv.,  in  which  is  nar¬ 
rated  the  commencement  of  our  Lord’s  ministry. 


CHRIST  AT  NAZARETH. 


91 


After  having  taught  in  the  synagogues  of  Galilee, 
in  such  a  manner  that  “  there  went  out  a  fame  of 
Him  through  all  the  region  round  about,”  “  He 
came  to  Nazareth,  where  He  had  been  brought  up ; 
and  as  His  custom  was,  He  went  into  the  Synagogue 
on  the  Sabbath-day,  and  stood  up  for  to  read.”  As 
He  expounded  to  them  the  errands  of  love  on  which 
He  had  come,  “  to  preach  the  gospel  to  the  poor,  to 
heal  the  broken-hearted,  and  preach  deliverance  to 
the  captives,”  they  “  all  bore  Him  witness,  and  won¬ 
dered  at  the  gracious  words  which  proceeded  out  of 
His  mouth.”  But  when  he  came  to  rebuke,  and  to 
a  personal  application  of  His  discourse,  they  “  were 
filled  with  wrath,  and  rose  up,  and  thrust  Him  out  of 
the  city,  and  led  him  unto  the  brow  of  the  hill  where¬ 
on  their  city  was  built,  that  they  might  cast  Him 
down  headlong.”  Thus,  “  He  came  to  His  own,  and 
His  own  received  Him  not.”  We  have  no  record 
of  His  ever  again  preaching  in  Nazareth,  or  even 
visiting  it ;  as,  though  it  is  afterwards  mentioned  that 
He  returned  into  “  His  own  country,”  that  is,  Lower 
Galilee,  it  is  evident  from  Mat.  iv.  13,  xii.  46 — 50, 
and  xiii.  1,  that  both  He  and  His  family  had  moved 
their  abode  to  one  of  the  towns  on  the  lake  of  Ti¬ 
berias.  The  men  of  Nazareth  put  away  from  them 
the  word  of  salvation,  and  the  Lord  went  to  other 
cities  and  villages,  visiting  them  no  more.  And  thus 
it  is  still.  So  long  as  the  Gospel  is  preached  in 
general  terms,  men  of  the  world  listen  to  it,  and  even 


92 


FIG  ORCHARD. 


approve  it ;  but  when  it  is  pressed  home,  when  it  is 
said,  “  Thou  art  the  man,”  they  are,  like  the  men 
of  Nazareth,  “  filled  with  wrath ;”  and  if  they  cannot 
thrust  the  preacher  from  them,  they  remove  from 
him,  and  seek  “  smooth  things”  elsewhere. 

In  the  afternoon  we  returned  to  our  orchard  of  fig 
trees,  and  I  felt  indescribable  pleasure  in  looking 
around  me,  and  thinking  that  the  eyes  of  our  blessed 
Saviour  had  rested  on  the  same  objects  I  now  beheld, 
that  perhaps  He  had  walked  in  the  very  place  where 
I  was  now  walking.  It  gave  to  me  a  feeling  of  the 
reality  of  His  humanity,  such  as  I  never  had  before. 

Beneath  the  church  of  the  Latin  Convent  is  a 
grotto,  in  which,  it  is  said,  the  Virgin  Mary  was 
when  the  Angel  appeared  to  her.  The  church  is 
from  this  called  the  Church  of  the  Annunciation. 
Over  this  grotto  is  said  to  have  stood  her  house, 
which  has  since  taken  its  flight  to  Loretto.  These 
monkish  traditions  have  seldom  any  other  effect  than 
that  of  breaking  in  upon  and  disturbing  one’s  own 
sacred  associations.  Some  of  them  are  palpably 
absurd.  The  Mount  of  Precipitation,  as  they  call  it, 
or  the  spot  from  whence  the  men  of  Nazareth  were 
about  to  cast  down  Jesus,  instead  of  being  on  the 
“  brow  of  the  hill  whereon  the  city  is  built,”  is  a  pre¬ 
cipice  about  two  miles  distant  from  Nazareth. 

We  left  Nazareth  on  the  morning  of  the  15th,  and 
as  we  rode  along  I  gazed  on  every  object  with  un¬ 
abated  interest.  We  had  still  in  view  Endor  and 


/ 


A  WELL  SCENE.  93 

Nain,  Jezreel  and  Shunam,  and  the  mountains  of 
Gilboa.  About  noon,  we  stopped  at  a  well  to  take 
some  refreshment ;  there  was  no  pleasant  shade  to 
shelter  us,  but  a  well  of  good  water  is  even  more  in¬ 
dispensable  to  a  traveller  in  a  dry  and  thirsty  land 
than  “  the  shadow  of  a  great  rock,”  acceptable  as 
this  is.  Soon  after  we  arrived,  a  number  of  women 
came  to  draw  water ;  and,  as  usual,  a  great  deal  of 
quarrelling  ensued  among  them  as  to  who  was  to  get 
first  to  draw  the  water.  We  had  a  similar  scene  of 
squabbling  constantly  before  our  eyes  at  the  well 
of  the  Virgin  at  Nazareth,  which  was  close  to  the 
place  where  our  tent  was  pitched.  How  many 
Scripture  scenes  did  this  recall  to  mind !  The  in¬ 
terview  of  Moses  with  the  daughters  of  Reuel,  where 
the  same  contest  seems  to  have  taken  place  ,*  as  well 
as  the  more  ancient  ones  of  Eliezer  with  Rebecca, 
and  Jacob  with  Rachel.  I  was  much  struck  with 
the  appearance  of  many  of  the  young  v/omen,  who, 
though  merely  clothed  with  a  coarse  wrapper,  had 
several  bracelets  on  their  arms,  and  wore  ear-rings 
and  nose-jewels.  One  of  them  filled  the  trough  for 
our  horses  and  mules,  but  not  quite  with  the  grace 
of  Rebecca  or  Rachel,  as  she  evidently  expected  a 
backshish*  for  so  doing;.  I  could  understand  Eliezer’s 
test  of  an  amiable  and  generous  woman,  likely  to 
make  his  master’s  son  happy. 


*  A  gift. 


94 


BURKA. 


After  resting  about  an  hour,  we  proceeded  on  our 
journey.  Our  ride  was  far  from  agreeable,  as  we 
met  several  rough  and  savage-looking  personages, 
armed  with  guns  and  spears.  The  country  is  in  a 
very  disturbed  state  ,*  there  is  a  constant  warfare 
going  on  between  the  Bedouins  and  the  Arabs.  We 
learned  afterwards  that  there  had  been  a  fight  that 
day,  in  which  the  former  lost  ten,  and  the  latter 
thirty  men.  They  constantly  rob  and  plunder  one 
another,  and  there  seems  no  law  nor  government  to 
interfere.  In  this  country  one  sees  more  plainly 
than  in  any  other  that  the  swords  are  not  yet  turned 
into  ploughshares,  nor  the  spears  into  pruning-hooks  ; 
for  every  villager  one  meets  is  armed,  and  a  shepherd 
tends  his  flock,  not  with  a  pastoral  staff  and  crook, 
but  with  sword  and  gun. 

About  five  o’clock  in  the  afternoon  we  arrived  at 
a  village  called  Burka,  distant  from  Samaria  about 
an  hour’s  journey.  We  could  not  get  any  place  to 
pitch  our  tents  free  from  thorns ;  this,  indeed,  was  a 
very  common  evil ;  but  here  it  was  worse  than  usual. 
We  tried  to  get,  in  the  village,  a  spade  or  hoe,  with 
which  we  might  clear  the  ground,  but  such  imple¬ 
ments  were  quite  unknown  to  the  inhabitants  of 
Burka,  and  are  so  to  many  others  in  this  land.  It 
says  much  for  the  fertility  of  the  soil  (where  the 
ground  is  arable  at  all)  that  they  obtain  such 
crops  as  they  do,  since  all  their  agriculture  consists 


SAMARIA. 


95 


in  scratching  the  surface  of  the  ground  with  a 
wretched  plough. 

We  at  length  procured  an  axe,  and  with  it  con¬ 
trived  to  clear  the  floor  of  our  tent  a  little,  so  as  to 
enable  us  to  spread  our  mats.  We  were  much  an¬ 
noyed  by  the  people  of  the  village  crowding  about 
our  tent,  as  it  required  constant  watching  lest  we 
should  have  our  things  stolen. 

Next  morning  we  set  out  at  six  o’clock,  and  in 
about  an  hour  we  came  to  the  sight  of  ancient 
Samaria,  the  capital  of  the  kingdom  of  Israel  after 
the  revolt  of  the  ten  tribes.  It  was  built  by  Omri, 
the  sixth  king  of  Israel.  “  He  bought  the  hill 
Samaria  of  Shemer  for  two  talents  of  silver,  and 
built  on  the  hill,  and  called  the  name  of  the  city 
which  he  built  after  the  name  of  Shemer,  owner £f 
the  hill  Samaria.”*  The  scenery  here  is  truly 
beautiful ;  it  is  one  of  the  very  few  spots  in  Palestine 
to  which  I  could  apply  such  an  epithet.  Many  other 
portions,  I  doubt  not,  were  so  in  their  days  of  culti¬ 
vation,  and  will  again  be  so  when  “  the  land  that 
was  desolate  is  become  like  the  garden  of  Eden  ;”f 
but  in  their  present  waste  condition,  they  are  very 
unlike  all  that  we  are  accustomed  to  call  beautiful 
in  Italy,  or  any  European  country. 

“  The  fine  round  swelling  hill,  or  almost  mountain 
of  Samaria,  stands  alone  in  the  midst  of  this  great 


*  1  Kings  xvi.  24. 


f  Ezek.  xxxvi.  35. 


96 


SAMARITANS. 


basin  of  some  two  hours*  in  diameter,  surrounded 
by  higher  mountains  on  every  side.  The  mountains 
and  the  valleys  around  are  to  a  great  extent  arable, 
and  enlivened  by  many  villages  and  the  hand  of 
cultivation.  From  all  these  circumstances,  the  situa¬ 
tion  of  the  ancient  Samaria  is  one  of  great  beauty.”f 
“  It  continued  to  be  the  capital  of  Israel  for  two 
centuries,  and  until  the  carrying  away  of  the  ten 
tribes  by  Shalmaneser  under  King  Hoshea,  about 
720,  B.  C.  Augustus  (‘  the  Roman  Emperor’)  be¬ 
stowed  Samaria  on  Herod  the  Great,  who  ultimately 
rebuilt  the  city  with  great  magnificence  and  strength, 
and  gave  it  the  name  Sebaste,  in  honor  of  Augus¬ 
tus.”^: 

Samaria  is  associated  with  several  of  the  miracles 
oLElijah  and  Elisha ;  and  its  New  Testament  asso¬ 
ciations  are  also  interesting.  In  our  Lord’s  time  the 
Holy  Land  was  divided  into  four  separate  regions — 
Galilee  in  the  north,  Samaria  in  the  middle,  Judea 
in  the  south,  all  these  being  within,  or  on  the  west 
side  of  the  Jordan ;  while  the  region  beyond,  or  to 
the  east  of  Jordan,  was  called  Percea.  The  Sama¬ 
ritans  mentioned  in  the  New  Testament  were  the 


*  About  six  miles. 

J  Robinson’s  Biblical  Researches  in  Palestine,  vol. 
iii.  138. 

t  Robinson’s  Biblical  Researches,  vol.  iii.  147.  The 
name  Sebaste  is  the  Greek  translation  of  the  Latin  epithet 
or  name  Augusta. 


PROPHECIES  AGAINST  SABIARIA,  97 

descendants  of  the  mixed  multitude  placed  by  the 
King  of  Assyria  “  in  the  cities  of  Samaria,  instead 
of  the  children  of  Israel.”  The  Samaritans  had  a 
temple  of  their  own  on  Mount  Gerizim,  and  offered 
sacrifices  according  to  the  law  of  Moses ;  but  the 
Jews  refused  to  acknowledge  them  as  being  of  the 
true  religion,  and  had  a  great  enmity  against  them. 
As  a  reproach  to  our  Lord,  they  said  to  him, — 
“  Thou  art  a  Samaritan,  and  hast  a  devil.”* 

The  Samaritans  seem  to  have  formed  a  sort  of 
middle  class  between  Jews  and  Gentiles.  When  our 
Lord  sent  forth  his  twelve  apostles,  He  said, — “  Go 
not  into  the  way  of  the  Gentiles,  and  into  any  city 
of  the  Samaritans  enter  ye  not ;  but  go  rather  to  the 
lost  sheep  of  the  house  of  Israel.”f  And  though  a 
Christian  church  was  gathered  in  Samaria  through 
the  preaching  of  Philip,  several  years  before  the  con¬ 
version  of  Cornelius  and  his  friends,  it  is  evident 
these  were  reckoned  the  first  Gentile  converts.* 

Many  are  the  denunciations  in  Scripture  against 
Samaria,  and  they  have  been  fulfilled  to  the  very 
letter.  I  cannot  illustrate  this  better  than  by  quoting 
the  interesting  account  given  by  the  Scotch  deputa¬ 
tion.  “  We  read  over  the  prophecy  of  Micah  (Mich, 
i.  6)  regarding  Samaria,  as  we  drew  near  to  it,  and 
conversed  together  as  to  its  full  meaning.  We  asked 
Dr.  Keith  what  he  understood  by  the  expression,  4 1 


*  John  viii.  48. 


f  Mat.  x.  5,  6. 


98 


FULFILMENT  OF  PROPHECY. 


will  make  Samaria  as  an  heajp  of  the  field?  He 
replied,  that  he  supposed  the  ancient  stones  of 
Samaria  would  be  found,  not  in  the  form  of  a  ruin, 
but  gathered  into  heaps  in  the  same  manner  as  they 
do  in  clearing  a  vineyard,  or  as  our  farmers  at  home 
plear  their  fields  by  gathering  the  stones  together. 
In  a  little  after  we  found  the  conjecture  to  be  com¬ 
pletely  verified.  We  halted  at  the  eastern  end  of 
the  hill,”  and  “  ascended  on  foot  by  a  narrow  and 
steep  pathway,  enclosed  by  rude  dykes,  the  stones 
of  which  are  large,  and  many  of  them  carved,  and 
these  are  piled  rather  than  built  upon  one  another. 
Some  of  them  are  loose,  and  ready  to  fall.  Indeed 
the  whole  face  of  this  part  of  the  hill  suggests  the 
idea  that  the  buildings  of  the  ancient  city  had  been 
thrown  down  from  the  brow  of  the  hill.  Ascending 
to  the  top,  we  went  round  the  whole  summit,  and 
found  marks  of  the  same  process  everywhere.  The 
people  of  the  country,  in  order  to  make  room  for 
their  fields  and  gardens,  have  swept  off  the  old 
houses,  and  poured  the  stones  down  into  the  valley 
thereby  literally  fulfilling  the  latter  part  of  the  verse 
above  alluded  to, — “  I  will  pour  down  the  stones 
thereof  into  the  valley.” 

Besides  these  remains  of  the  ancient  city  of  Sama¬ 
ria,  there  are  a  great  many  pillars  standing,  the 


*  Narrative  of  a  Mission  of  Enquiry  to  the  Jews  by  the 
Church  of  Scotland,  p.  293-4. 


RUINS  OF  CHURCHES. 


99 


remnants  of  a  magnificent  colonnade,  supposed  to  be 
of  the  time  of  Herod  the  Great.  But  the  most  en¬ 
tire  and  conspicuous  ruin  of  the  place  is  that  of  the 
church  of  St.  John  the  Baptist,  said  to  be  erected 
over  the  spot  where  he  was  buried.  This  three¬ 
fold  character  of  the  ruins  was  very  striking  to  my 
mind ;  Samaritan,  Pagan,  and  nominally  Christian 
edifices,  all  involved  in  one  common  destruction. 
And  can  we  say  that  the  last  did  not  deserve  its 
doom  as  much  as  the  other  two  ?  Nowhere  do  the 
absurdities  of  Popery,  or  the  useless  ceremonies  of 
formal  Christianity,  appear  so  revolting  as  in  the 
Holy  Land,  because  there  they  obviously  appear  a 
vain  mockery  of  that  former  dispensation,  which, 
when  it  had  served  the  end  for  which  God  appointed 
it,  “  was  abolished,”  “  for  the  weakness  and  unpro¬ 
fitableness  thereof.”  There  is  scarcely  a  place  in 
Palestine  where  you  can  say  to  the  Jew, — “  Behold 
the  desolation  of  your  cities  ;”  where  he  cannot  point 
to  the  ruined  church,  and  say  in  return, — “  What 
meaneth  this  ?” 

There  is  a  modern  village  called  Sebustieh,  si¬ 
tuated  a  little  way  up  the  hill  of  Samaria  ;  its  name 
is  a  corruption  of  Sebaste,  the  name  given  to  Sama¬ 
ria  by  Herod  the  Great.  The  Jews,  however,  seem 
to  have  retained  the  ancient  name,  as  the  city  is  al¬ 
ways  called  Samaria  in  the  New  Testament. 

After  travelling  rather  more  than  two  hours  far¬ 
ther,  we  arrived  at  the  town  of  Nabloos,  the  She- 


100 


SHECHEM. 


chem  of  the  Old,  and  Sychar  of  the  New  Testament. 
It  is  a  long,  narrow  town,  situated  at  the  base  of 
Mount  Gerizim,  in  the  valley  between  that  hill  and 
Mount  Ebal.  These  mounts  of  the  blessing  and  the 
curse,  (Deut.  xxvii.  11 — 13  ;  and  Josh.  viii.  33,  34.) 
rise  each  to  the  height  of  about  eight  hundred  feet 
above  the  narrow  valley  that  divides  them,  which 
is  here  not  above  five  hundred  yards  wide.  How 
affecting  to  look  upon  Mount  Ebal,  and  remember 
that  the  curse  has  come  upon  Israel  to  the  uttermost ! 
But  a  time  shall  yet  come,  when,  the  veil  being  taken 
from  their  hearts,  all  the  promised  blessings  shall  be 
theirs.  They  shall  yet  be  “  blessed  in  the  city,  and 
blessed  in  the  field.”* 

This  place  is  full  of  Scripture  recollections  :  it  is 
the  first  spot  mentioned  in  the  promised  land.  After 
the  Lord  had  said  unto  Abraham,  “Get  thee  out  of 
thy  country,  and  from  thy  kindred,”  this  was  the 
first  place  he  came  to  ;f  and  here  the  Lord  appeared 
to  him  and  said,  “  Unto  thy  seed  will  I  give  this 
land.”  Near  this  Jacob  spread  his  tent  on  his  re¬ 
turn  from  Padan-aram,  and  dwelt  for  a  time,  until 
the  wickedness  of  his  sons  in  slaying  the  men  of 
Shechem  made  a  removal  desirable ;  and  the  Lord 
ordered  him  to  Bethel.  It  was  here  that  all  Israel 
assembled  to  make  Rehoboam  king,  and  that  the  re- 


*  Deut.  xxviii.  3 


9* 


\  Gen.  xii.  6,  7. 


SAMARITANS. 


101 


volt  of  the  ten  tribes  took  place.  It  was  also  one 
of  the  cities  of  refuge,  to  which  the  man-slayer 
might  flee  from  the  avenger  of  blood. 

“After  the  exile,  Shechem  is  mainly  known  as 
the  chief  seat  of  the  people,  who  thenceforth  bore 
the  name  of  Samaritans.  When  the  Jews  returned 
under  Zerubbabel  from  their  exile,  and  began  to 
build  Jerusalem  and  their  temple,  the  Samaritans 
also  desired  to  aid  them  in  the  work.  “  Let  us 
build  with  you,  for  we  seek  the  Lord  as  ye  do,  and 
we  do  sacrifice  unto  him  since  the  days  of  Esar-had- 
don.”*  It  was  the  refusal  of  the  Jews  to  admit 
them  to  this  privilege  that  gave  rise  to  the  subse¬ 
quent  hatred  between  the  two  races.”f  It  is  a  re¬ 
markable  circumstance  that  to  this  day  there  is  a 
small  remnant  of  the  Samaritans  still  living  in  this 
place.  They  only  amount  to  about  a  hundred  and 
fifty  individuals;  but  they  are  still  as  distinct  from 
Jews  and  Gentiles  as  they  were  in  the  days  of  our 
Saviour.  The  five  books  of  Moses,  or  Pentateuch, 
is  the  only  part  of  the  Bible  they  receive :  of  this 
they  have  some  very  ancient  manuscripts,  and  with 
the  exception  of  a  few  unimportant  verbal  differences, 
their  version  of  the  Pentateuch  is  exactly  the  same 
as  that  of  the  Jews.  This  is  one  of  many  instances 
in  which  the  wrath  of  man  has  been  overruled  by 


*  Ezra  iv.  2. 

f  Robinson’s  Biblical  Researcnes,  vol.  iii.  116. 


102 


SAMARITANS. 


God  to  His  glory.  It  is  a  great  proof  that  the 
Jewish  Scriptures  have  been  handed  down  without 
alteration,  when  this  testimony  to  their  faithfulness 
is  borne  by  a  people  who  have  always  been  at  en¬ 
mity  with  them.  At  the  first  establishment  of  the 
Samaritans  in  Palestine,  more  than  700  years  before 
Christ,  “  one  of  the  priests  whom  they  had  carried 
away  from  Samaria  came  and  dwelt  in  Bethel,  and 
'taught  them  how  they  should  fear  the  Lord.”*  From 
him  they  would  receive  the  Pentateuch  in  use  in  the 
kingdom  of  Israel.  Although  Jeroboam,  the  son  of 
Nebat,  (whose  residence  was  this  very  Shechem,)  in¬ 
troduced  idol-worship  into  the  kingdom,  and  ordain¬ 
ed  feasts,  “  which  he  had  devised  of  his  own  heart,” 
it  is  evident  the  knowledge  of  the  true  religion  had 
not  been  entirely  rooted  out ;  as  may  be  proved,  not 
only  by  the  instances  of  Elijah  and  Elisha, 'und  the 
seven  thousand  who  had  not  bowed  the  knee  to 
Baal,  but  by  the  existence  of  several  schools  of  the 
prophets  at  Bethel  and  elsewhere.!  By  the  “  sons 
of  the  prophets”  would  the  law  be  carefully  pre¬ 
served;  and  it  was  probably  a  copy  belonging  to 
some  of  them  that  the  Samaritans  received,  as  their 
instructor  was  from  Samaria,  and  not  from  Judah, 
and  they  never  had  any  friendly  intercourse  with 
the  Jews.  From  the  time  of  Solomon,  therefore,  we 
have  the  five  books  of  Moses  handed  down  to  us  en- 


*  2  Kings  xvii.  28. 


f  See  1  Kings  xx.  35. 


Jacob’s  well. 


103 


tirely  independent  of  the  Jews,  and  by  a  people  who 
have  always  been  at  enmity  with  them.  Even  in 
the  present  day  there  is  a  great  shyness  between  the 
Jews  and  Samaritans ;  they  not  only  do  not  inter¬ 
marry,  nor  worship  together,  but  have  no  social 
intercourse. 

We  only  remained  a  few  hours  at  Nabloos,  being 
now  anxious  to  arrive  at  Jerusalem  as  soon  as  possi¬ 
ble.  About  half  an  hour  after  we  left  the  city  we 
came  to  Jacob’s  well.  The  visit  to  this  memorable 
spot  was  indeed  a  spiritual  feast  to  me,  calling  up,  as 
it  did,  such  rich  stores  of  meditation,  reaching  from 
the  time  of  Jacob  to  the  days  of  Jacob’s  Lord,  “  the 
Angel  who  redeemed  him  from  all  evil.” 

Jacob  was  journeying  from  Padan-aram  to  the 
land  of  his  fathers  :  he  had  wrestled  with  the  Angel 
of  the  Covenant  and  received  the  name  of  Israel, 
“  a  prince  of  God “  and  he  came  to  Shalem,  a 
city  of  Shechem,  and  pitched  his  tent  before  the  city. 
And  he  bought  a  parcel  of  a  held  where  he  had 
spread  his  tent,  at  the  hand  of  the  children  of  Ha- 
mor,  Shechem’s  father,  for  an  hundred  pieces  of 
money  ;  and  he  erected  there  an  altar,  and  called  it 
El-elohe-Israel  ;”*thatis,  “  God,  the  God  of  Israel.” 

Here,  then,  I  was  in  the  first  spot  in  the  Holy 
Land  that  had  ever  been  possessed  by  my  fathers, 
as  Abraham  had  owned  nothing  but  a  burying-place 


*  Genesis  xxxiii.  18 — 20. 


104 


Jacob’s  well. 


therein.  When  Jacob  first  left  his  father’s  house, 
after  having  enjoyed  a  glorious  vision  at  Bethel, 
“  He  vowed  a  vow,  saying  :  If  God  will  be  with  me, 
and  will  keep  me  in  this  way  that  I  go,  and  will 
give  me  bread  to  eat,  and  raiment  to  put  on,  so  that 
I  come  again  to  my  father’s  house  in  peace,  then 
shall  the  Lord  be  my  God,  and  this  stone  which  I 
have  set  for  a  pillar  shall  be  God’s  house.”*  God 
had  fulfilled  all  his  petitions,  and  brought  him  again 
in  peace  to  his  father’s  land  ;  but  instead  of  hasten¬ 
ing  to  Bethel  to  perform  his  vow,  he  settled  down 
here  for  some  years.  How  prone  are  we,  in  the 
time  of  outward  prosperity,  to  forget  the  vows 
“  which  our  lips  have  uttered,  and  our  mouth  hath 
spoken,  when  we  were  in  trouble  !”  Jacob  had  bit¬ 
terly  to  repent  this  sojourn  near  Shechem ;  it  pro¬ 
bably  began  in  worldly  expediency,  and  it  ended  in 
shame  and  bloodshed.  It  must  have  been  a  time  of 
religious  declension  with  Jacob  when  his  household 
had  “  strange  gods  among  them. ’’I  But  family  af¬ 
fliction  in  its  most  trying  form,  that  of  family  sin, 
roused  him  from  this  state,  and  God  reminded  him 
of  his  vow.  “  God  said  unto  Jacob,  Arise,  go  up 
to  Bethel,  and  dwell  there,  and  make  there  an  altar 
unto  God,  that  appeared  unto  thee  when  thou  fled- 
dest  from  the  face  of  Esau  thy  brother.’’^ 

This  property  Jacob  retained,  and  used  as  pastu- 


*  Gen.  xxviii.  20-22.  t  Gen.  xxxv.  2.  $  Gen.  xxxv.  1. 


Christ  at  Jacob’s  well. 


105 


rage  for  his  flocks  after  he  was  settled  in  Hebron. 
When  Joseph  was  sent  to  inquire  after  the  welfare 
of  his  brethren,  they  had  gone  “  to  feed  their  father’s 
flock  in  Shechem.”*  It  is  to  this  day  one  of  the 
few  places  in  Palestine  that  are  well  watered  and 
fertile.  “  It  is  difficult,”  says  Robinson,  “  to  ac¬ 
count  for  the  fact  that  a  well  should  have  been  dug 
here  at  all,  on  a  spot  in  the  immediate  vicinity  of 
so  many  natural  fountains.  I  can  solve  this  diffi¬ 
culty  only  by  admitting  that  this  is  probably  the  ac¬ 
tual  well  of  the  patriarch.  The  practice  of  the 
patriarchs  to  dig  wells  wherever  they  sojourned  is 
well  known  ;  and  if  Jacob’s  field,  as  it  would  seem, 
was  here  before  the  mouth  of  the  valley  of  Shechem, 
he  might  prefer  not  to  be  dependent  for  water  on 
fountains  which  lay  up  that  valley,  and  were  not  his 
own.”t 

There  is  a  low  vaulted  chamber  built  over  the 
mouth  of  the  well,  the  lower  part  of  which  may 
have  been  originally  the  ledge  that  surrounded  it, 
on  which,  or  on  a  similar  one  of  an  older  date,  our 
Lord  may  have  sat  to  rest  when  weary  with  his 
journey.  I  cannot  express  the  feeling  of  vivid  re¬ 
ality  which  the  sight  of  this  well  gave  to  the  history 
and  the  scene  connected  with  it.  Jesus  “  left  Judea, 
and  departed  again  into  Galilee :  And  he  must  needs 


*  Gen.  xxxvii.  12.  t  Robinson’s  Bib.  Res.  vol.  iii.  112. 


106 


WOMAN  OF  SAMARIA. 


go  through  Samaria,”*  which  lay  directly  between 
Judea  and  Galilee,  unless  He  had  taken  a  very  cir¬ 
cuitous  road,  crossing  and  re-crossing  the  Jordan. 
As  he  sat  on  the  well,  faint  and  weary,  “  there 
cometh  a  woman  of  Samaria  to  draw  water.”  All 
travellers  express  surprise  why  a  woman  of  Samaria 
should  come  a  mile  and  a  half  to  draw  water,  when 
there  are  fountains  close  to  the  town  of  Sychar.  I 
think  there  is  every  reason  to  suppose  she  did  so  as 
a  religious  ceremony,  similar  to  that  practised  by  the 
Jews  in  Jerusalem  on  the  great  day  of  the  Feast  of 
Tabernacles.  Let  it  not  be  supposed  that  her  being 
a  professor  of  religion  was  at  all  inconsistent  with 
her  leading  an  immoral  life ;  in  the  East  to  this  day 
the  most  devout  expressions  of  piety  towards  God 
are  often  uttered  by  persons  of  vicious  character, 
without  their  having  an  idea  that  there  is  any  incon¬ 
sistency  between  their  avowed  principles  and  their 
practice.  This  is  a  constant  source  of  complaint 
among  missionaries  in  Syria.!  When  our  Lord 
had  told  this  woman  “  all  things  that  ever  she  did,” 
she  perceived  He  was  a  prophet,  and  immediately 


*  John  iv.  3,  4. 

f  “  She  was  a  Druze,  and  talked  most  fluently  and 
piously.  Pious  language  being  so  universal  in  this  coun¬ 
try,  we  must  trust  more  to  the  influence  of  our  example 
than  our  words  upon  those  around  us.” — Memoir  of  Mrs. 
Smith,  of  the  Mission  in  Syria,  p.  276.  Boston  Edit.  1840. 


WOMAN  OF  SAMARIA. 


107 


sought  instruction  from  Him  on  the  disputed  point 
between  Jews  and  Samaritans  as  to  which  was  the 
holy  place,  where  men  ought  to  worship.  How 
striking  is  the  reply  of  our  Lord,  when  considered 
in  the  very  place  where  the  fulfilment  of  its  predic¬ 
tion  is  now  so  manifest, — “  Woman,  believe  me,  the 
hour  cometh  when  ye  shall  neither  in  this  mountain, 
nor  yet  at  Jerusalem,  worship  the  Father.”  He 
next  plainly  told  her  with  which  of  the  contending 
parties  the  truth  then  lay.  “  Ye  worship  ye  know 
not  what ;  we  know  what  we  worship,  for  salvation 
is  of  the  Jews.”  To  one  of  His  brethren  according 
to  the  flesh,  these  words,  “  We  know  what  we  wor¬ 
ship,”  are  peculiarly  affecting,  our  Lord  so  plainly 
identifying  himself  with  the  Jews.  But  how  impor¬ 
tant  to  all  His  true  disciples  of  every  nation  under 
heaven  is  the  declaration  that  follows, — “  But  the 
time  cometh,  and  now  is,  when  the  true  worshippers 
shall  worship  the  Father  in  spirit  and  in  truth  ;  for 
the  Father  seeketh  such  to  worship  Him ;  God  is  a 
spirit,  and  they  that  worship  Him  must  worship  Him 
in  spirit  and  in  truth.”*  As  if  he  said, — “At  pre¬ 
sent  ‘  salvation  is  of  the  Jews  there  is  with  them, 
and  their  institutions,  an  arbitrary  and  official  sanc¬ 
tity,  appointed  by  God  Himself;  and  all  who  would 
worship  aright  must  be  joined  with  them  ;  but  the 
hour  is  at  hand  when  this  state  of  things  shall  pass 


*  John  iv.  21 — 24. 


108 


REFLECTIONS. 


away.  Now  there  are  4  ordinances  of  divine  ser¬ 
vice,  and  a  worldly  sanctuary,’  because  4  the  way 
into  the  holiest  of  all  is  not  yet  made  manifest 
now  there  4  are  priests  that  offer  gifts  according  to 
the  law,  who  serve  unto  the  example  and  shadow  of 
heavenly  things  ;’t  but  when  the  4  one  sacrifice’  has 
been  offered,  when  the  great  reality  has  come,  all 
these  shadows  shall  vanish,  official  sanctity  of  place 
and  person  shall  cease,  and  nothing  shall  hencefor¬ 
ward  be  accounted  as  worship,  save  the  homage  of 
the  heart, — the  worship  of  God  in  spirit  and  in 
truth.”  More  than  eighteen  centuries  have  elapsed 
since  this  declaration,  (John  iv.  21 — 24,)  and  yet  we 
find  in  the  Christian  church,  instead  of  a  universal 
testimony  that  it  is  the  Spirit  alone  that  quickeneth, 
the  flesh  profiteth  nothing,  a.  cleaving  to  outward 
rites  and  ceremonies,  as  if  these  were  still  the  ap¬ 
pointed  channels  through  which  the  Spirit  is  con¬ 
veyed  I  A  large  portion  of  the  professing  Church 
of  Christ  seem  still  in  the  condition  of  the  Samari-' 
tan  woman,  obliged  to  go  to  the  well  of  Jacob  to 
draw  water,  instead  of  possessing  in  themselves  44  a 
well  of  water  springing  up  into  everlasting  life.”  If 
I  am  still  to  be  dependent  on  a  priest  either  for  the 
commencement  or  sustenance  of  spiritual  life,  I  see 
little  to  distinguish  the  Christian  from  the  Jewish 
dispensation  ;  if,  instead  of  hereditary  priests  of  a 


*  Heb.  ix.  1,  8. 


f  Heb.  viii.  4,  5 


Joseph’s  tomb. 


109 


sacred  family,  chosen  by  God  Himself,  I  am  directed 
to  regard  as  officially  holy,  priests  made  by  the  will 
of  man,  in  many  cases  from  mere  worldly  motives  ; 
if  I  am  to  have  priests  without  Urim  and  Thummim, 
and  a  temple  without  a  Shechinah,  instead  of  giving 
me  a  substance  in  lieu  of  a  shadow,  I  am  only  pre¬ 
sented  with  an  empty  mockery  of  a  glory  that  has 
departed.  The  Church  of  Christ  may  still  be  edified 
by  real  gifts,  and  real  sanctity  ,*  but  the  ritual  and 
official  are  mere  “  beggarly  elements,”  passed  away 
for  ever. 

The  place  where  Jacob’s  well  is  situated  is  called 
in  the  New  Testament,  “  The  parcel  of  ground  that 
Jacob  gave  to  his  son  Joseph.”*  “  And  the  bones 
of  Joseph,  which  the  children  of  Israel  brought  up 
out  of  Egypt,  buried  they  in  Shechem,  in  a  parcel 
of  ground  which  Jacob  bought  of  the  sons  of  Hamor.”f 
At  a  short  distance  from  the  well  is  a  tomb,  said  to 
be  built  on  the  spot  where  Joseph’s  bones  are  buried. 
In  the  tradition  respecting  Jacob’s  well  and  Joseph’s 
tomb,  Jews,  Samaritans,  Christians,  and  Mohamme¬ 
dans  all  agree,  and  the  situation  in  regard  to  Sychar 
corresponds  so  exactly  with  the  Scripture  account, 
that  there  is  no  reason  to  doubt  its  correctness.  The 
present  name  of  Sychar,  Nabloos,  is  a  corruption 
of  its  Roman  appellation,  Neapolis.  I  must  not 
omit  to  mention  that  one  of  the  American  mission- 


*  John  iv. 


10 


f  Joshua  xxiv.  32. 


110 


LUBBANA. 


aries,  some  years  ago,  sounded  Jacob’s  well,  and 
found  it  seventy-five  feet  deep,  having  ten  feet  of 
water  in  it.  The  Samaritan  woman  might  truly  say 
“  the  well  is  deep.”  - 

I  After  viewing  this  interesting  spot  we  proceeded 
on  our  journey.  The  travelling  on  this  day  was 
rendered  very  uncomfortable  by  the  scarcity  of  water. 
My  friend  M.  having  lost  his  leathern  bottle,  we  had 
only  mine  to  depend  upon ;  and  the  water  it  con¬ 
tained  was  soon  spent.  I  thought  of  poor  Hagar 
when  suffering  a  similar  privation.  At  length  we 
came  to  a  little  pool  of  water  supplied  by  a  feeble 
spring.  It  was  full  of  insects.  One  of  the  Arab 
guards,  who  had  accompanied  us  from  Nazareth, 
seeing  me  hesitate  to  drink  it,  kindly  pulled  down 
his  shirt  sleeve  over  his  wrist,  and  offered  it  to  me 
as  a  filter  !  I  need  hardly  say  I  declined  his  obliging 
offer. 

We  pitched  our  tent  this  evening  at  a  village  called 
Lubbon,  the  ancient  Lebonah,  mentioned  in  Judges 
xxi.  19.  Like  other  Arab  villages,  it  consists  merely 
of  a  few  huts  built  of  mud ;  but  the  situation  is  fine, 
being  on  the  acclivity  of  one  of  those  terraced  hills 
that  are  frequently  met  with  in  Palestine.  With 
great  labor  the  sides  of  the  hills  have  been  cut  into 
flat  terraces,  or  ledges  of  rock,  to  which  soil  must 
have  been  artificially  conveyed.  On  these  terraces 
the  vines  were  cultivated.  This  explains  the  allu¬ 
sion  of  the  Psalmist  in  speaking  of  Israel  as  a  vine 


SHILOH. 


Ill 


brought  out  of  Egypt :  “  The  hills  were  covered  with 
the  shadow  of  it.”  From  the  terraces  of  this,  and 
of  some  of  the  other  hills,  the  soil  has  been  com¬ 
pletely  washed  away,  and  nothing  but  the  bare  rock 
remains.  But  the  sure  word  of  prophecy  has  said 
to  the  daughter  of  Israel :  “  Thou  shalt  yet  plant 
vines  upon  the  mountains  of  Samaria.”* 

About  three  miles  from  Lubban,  “  on  the  east  side 
of  the  highway  that  goeth  up  from  Bethel  to  She- 
chem,  and  on  the  south  of  Lebonah,”f  is  the  site  of 
the  ancient  Shiloh,  where  the  ark  and  tabernacle 
were  from  the  time  of  Joshua  until  that  of  Eli. 
Surely  if  any  thing  could  consecrate  a  portion  of  this 
accursed  earth,  the  visible  manifestation  of  Jehovah’s 
presence  for  so  many  years  must  have  done  so ;  but 
what  is  the  fact  ?  When  God  “  forsook  the  taber¬ 
nacle  of  Shiloh,”  the  place  became  common  and 
unclean.  Even  in  the  days  of  type  and  shadow, 
there  was  no  holiness  conceived  to  remain  after  God 
had  departed. 

Soon  after  we  had  pitched  our  tent,  we  saw  a 
number  of  the  villagers  running  out,  armed  with 
guns  and  swords.  W'e  learned  that  the  inhabitants 
of  a  neighboring  village  had  stolen  away  some  of 
their  cattle ;  and  they  were  going  forth  to  endeavor 
to  recover  them.  In  about  an  hour  after,  they  re¬ 
turned  in  triumph,  shouting  with  all  their  might. 


*Jer.  xxxi.  5 


f  Judges  xxi.  19. 


112 


A  FRAY. 


Happily,  the  victory  was  a  bloodless  one ;  at  the 
firing  of  the  first  gun,  the  prey  was  abandoned,  and 
the  robbers  fled.  This  gave  us  a  melancholy  picture 
of  the  state  of  the  people ;  rapine  and  petty  warfare 
without*  and  the  utter  absence  of  every  thing  like 
domestic  comfort  at  home.  Who  can  sufficiently 
estimate  the  blessings  of  civilization !  How  con¬ 
stantly  does  it  follow,  how  rarely  does  it  precede,  a 
knowledge  of  true  religion ;  which,  like  its  divine 
author,  sheds  its  temporal  blessings  on  the  just  and 
the  unjust ;  those  who  refuse  to  admit  its  light  within 
them  still  enjoying  the  advantages  derived  from  its 
shining  around  them. 

Next  morning  we  rose  very  early  to  set  out  on 
our  journey  to  Jerusalem.  I  felt  a  feverish  restless¬ 
ness  and  anxiety  to  reach  that  city,  which  had  been 
associated  in  my  mind  from  childhood,  with  all  that 
is  sacred  and  venerable ;  and  I  often  said  within 
myself  as  we  rode  along :  “  Is  it  possible  that  this 
very  day  my  feet  shall  stand  within  the  gates  of  Je¬ 
rusalem  ?” 

Our  route  lay  for  some  time  through  a  fertile  plain 
which  had  some  appearance  of  cultivation;  there 
being:  several  fields  of  millet  in  it.  But  the  farther 
we  advanced  on  our  journey,  the  more  barren  and 
desolate  the  country  became.  My  mind  was  alter¬ 
nately  occupied  with  two  very  different  pictures.  At 
one  time  I  thought  of  the  days  when  all  the  male 
population  of  Israel  went  up  “  three  times  in  a  year’5 


APPROACHING  JERUSALEM. 


113 


to  Jerusalem ;  “  whither  the  tribes  go  up,  the  tribes 
of  the  Lord,  unto  the  testimony  of  Israel,  to  give 
thanks  unto  the  name  of  the  Lord.”*  In  all  proba¬ 
bility,  six  of  the  tribes,  whose  possessions  lay  north¬ 
ward  of  where  I  then  was,  travelled  by  this  very 
road ;  the  party  increasing  at  every  stage  of  their 
journey ;  “  company  by  company,”  until  they  all 
“  appeared  before  God  in  Zion.”j'  As  I  thought  of 
this  goodly  assembly,  all  animated  by  one  spirit, 
and  intent  on  one  common  object,  receiving  each 
new  accession  of  brethren  with  friendly  greetings, 
and  beguiling  the  way  with  social  converse,  the  me¬ 
lancholy  contrast  presented  by  the  present  state  of  the 
country  forcibly  recalled  the  opposite  picture,  as  de¬ 
lineated  in  the  writings  of  the  prophets.  Nay,  I 
should  not  say  the  picture  was  recalled ;  the  very 
reality  was  itself  before  me.  “  The  highways”  are 
indeed  “  desolate”  and  “  lie  waste  ;”  instead  of  being 
trodden  by  a  joyous  company  of  Israel’s  sons,  a  few 
strangers  from  distant  lands  come  to  behold  the 
judgments  of  the  Lord,  and  to  “  say,  when  they  see 
the  plagues  of  that  land, — that  it  is  not  sown  nor 
beareth,  nor  any  grass  groweth  therein  : — Wherefore 
hath  the  Lord  done  thus  in  this  land  ?  What  mean- 
eth  the  heat  of  this  great  anger 

The  marks  of  the  curse  are  indeed  upon  the  land. 
Sometimes  a  green  spot  will  be  seen  at  a  distance, 


*  Ps.  cxxii.  4.  -j-  Ps.  lxxxiv.  7. 

10* 


4  Deut.  xxix.  23,  24. 


114 


APPROACHING  JERUSALEM. 


giving  the  idea  of  fertility ;  but  when  approached,  it 
is  found  to  bear  only  the  tokens  of  the  original  de¬ 
nunciation, — thorns  and  briers. 

We  rode  on  hour  after  hour,  amid  increasing 
desolation.  The  latter  part  of  the  way  lies  over  a 
succession  of  mountainous  ridges,  where  there  is  no 
regular  road,  but  the  horses  clamber  up  the  best  way 
they  can,  sometimes  over  smooth  slabs  of  stone,  and 
sometimes  through  heaps  of  loose  stones.  My  im¬ 
patience  to  see  the  holy  city  increased  every  hour. 
As  we  climbed  up  each  ridge,  I  expected  that,  from 
its  summit,  I  should  behold  Jerusalem ;  but  I  was 
doomed  to  many  disappointments ;  as  summit  after 
summit  only  gave  to  view  another  range  of  hills  to 
be  surmounted.  It  forcibly  reminded  me  of  the 
journey  to  the  Heavenly  Jerusalem,  which  is  a  steep 
and  difficult  path,  presenting  one  mountain  after 
another  to  be  overcome ;  but  we  know  that  at  last 
we  shall  reach  the  City  of  God ;  and  should  not  the 
certainty  of  this  reconcile  us  to  all  the  difficulties  of 
the  way  ?  While  on  this  tedious  journey,  I  was 
made  fully  to  understand  the  comparison  of  the 
Psalmist :  “  As  the  mountains  are  round  about  Jeru¬ 
salem,  so  the  Lord  is  round  about  his  people  from 
henceforth  even  for  ever.”* 

At  length  the  long-expected  moment  arrived :  about 
noon  we  reached  the  summit  of  the  hill  Scopus,  and 


*  Psalm  cxxv.  2. 


ARRIVAL  AT  JERUSALEM. 


115 


all  at  once  Jerusalem  burst  upon  my  view.  The 
feelings  of  such  a  moment  cannot  be  described  ;  they 
can  only  be  faintly  imagined  by  those  who  have  not 
experienced  them.  Every  Christian  traveller  speaks 
of  the  feeling  as  overpowering  :  what,  then,  was  it  to 
me,  as  at  once  a  Christian  and  a  Jew  !  The  scene 
of  the  world’s  redemption, — the  metropolis  of  the 
country  of  my  fathers, — “  the  City  of  the  Great 
King !”  I  could,  in  some  faint  measure,  realize  the 
feelings  of  my  blessed  Lord  and  Master,  when  “  He 
beheld  the  city,  and  wept  over  it.” 

But  here,  as  everywhere  else  in  the  Holy  Land, 
you  are  indebted  to  association  alone.  That  which 
actually  meets  your  view  is  a  comparatively  modern 
eastern  city ;  her  bulwarks  and  her  palaces  are  those 
of  the  false  prophet.  The  Lord  has  abhorred  His 
sanctuary ;  He  has  given  it  to  be  “  trodden  down  of 
the  Gentiles,  until  the  times  of  the  Gentiles  be  ful¬ 
filled.”*  How  near  this  may  be,  who  can  tell ! 

We  went  first  to  the  Damascus  gate,  but  were  not 
admitted  ;  we  then  went  round  to  the  Jaffa  gate ;  and 
by  it  I  entered  the  Holy  City.  My  feet  stood  “  with¬ 
in  the  gates  of  Jerusalem ;”  a  pilgrim  and  a  stranger 
I  entered  the  city  of  my  fathers,  “  Jerusalem,  which 
is  in  bondage  with  her  children  ;”f  yet,  through  the 
great  mercy  of  God,  a  citizen  of  “  the  Jerusalem 
which  is  above.” 


*  Luke  xxi.  24. 


f  Gal.  iv.  25 


116 


JERUSALEM. 


My  first  object  of  inquiry  was  after  letters  from 
my  real  home, — my  distant  home  in  my  adopted 
country.  Not  having  heard  of  my  family  for  several 
weeks,  I  was  truly  rejoiced  to  find  letters  awaiting 
me  here.  I  fully  realized  the  Scripture  truth  :  “  As 
cold  waters  to  a  thirsty  soul,  so  is  good  news  from 
a  far  country.”* 

I  had  soon  the  pleasure  of  meeting  with  two 
brethren  in  Christ,  and  according  to  the  flesh,  Bishop 
Alexander,  and  Mr.  Caiman;  from  both  of  whom, 
as  well  as  from  the  American  missionaries,  I  received 
the  most  Christian  and  friendly  attentions  during  my 
stay  in  Jerusalem.  I  had  also  the  pleasure  of  re- 
newing  my  acquaintance  with  another  Jewish  brother, 
the  Rev.  Mr.  Ewald.  I  feel  it  right  especially  to 
bear  testimony  to  the  kindness  of  Bishop  Alex¬ 
ander  ;  opposed  as  we  are  in  our  views  of  many 
things  that  relate  to  the  Church  of  Christ,  and  dif¬ 
fering  from  him,  as  I  do,  on  the  subject  of  the  mis¬ 
sion  at  Jerusalem,  which  difference  I  never  for  a 
moment  concealed  from  him,  he  continued  from  first 
to  last  to  treat  me  with  the  utmost  courtesy  and 
hospitality. 

We  spent  the  day  after  our  arrival  in  visiting, 
under  the  guidance  of  Mr.  Caiman,  the  various  re¬ 
markable  localities  immediately  round  the  city,  as 
we  wished  first  to  take  a  general  view,  and  return 
afterwards  to  those  spots  that  most  deeply  interested 


*  Prov.  xxv.  25 


J 


JERUSALEM. 


117 


us.  Instead  of  detailing  the  events  of  each  day,  it 
will  be  more  interesting  to  my  readers  to  give  them 
a  brief  account  of  the  city,  and  the  chief  places  of  in¬ 
terest  in  and  around  it. 

“  Jerusalem  lies  near  the  summit  of  a  broad 
mountain  ridge.  All  around  are  higher  hills  ;  on  the 
east,  the  Mount  of  Olives ;  on  the  south,  the  Hill  of 
Evil  Counsel,  so  called,  rising  directly  from  the  Yale 
of  Hinnom ;  on  the  west  the  ground  rises  gently  to 
the  borders  of  the  Great  Wady,  while  on  the  north 
a  bend  of  the  ridge  connected  with  the  Mount  of 
Olives  bounds  the  prospect  at  the  distance  of  more 
than  a  mile.”*  The  present  city  is  surrounded  by  a 
wall,  and  entered  by  four  gates.  Dr.  Robinson 
made  a  careful  measurement  of  the  wall,  and  found 
it  to  be  two  and  a  half  miles  round. 

Jerusalem  is  first  mentioned  in  connection  with 
Melchizedek,  who  was  king  of  Salem.  That  this  is 
the  same  place  which  was  afterwards  called  Jerusa¬ 
lem,  is  evident  from  Psalm  lxxvi.  2.  “  In  Salem 

also  is  his  tabernacle,  and  his  dwelling-place  in 
Zion.”  We  next  hear  of  it  under  the  name  of  Je- 
busi,  or  the  city  of  the  Jebusites,  whom  the  children 
of  Benjamin  could  not  drive  out,  but  who  continued 
to  dwell  in  this  their  fortified  city  until  the  time  of 
David.  When  David  was  anointed  king  over  all 
Israel,  he  went  up  to  this  strong-hold  to  extirpate 
the  last  of  the  heathens  from  the  land  of  Israel ;  they 


*  Robinson’s  Biblical  Researches,  1.  382. 


118 


JERUSALEM. 


trusted  in  the  lame  and  blind  idols  which  they  set 
on  the  wall  as  a  defence ;  but  David  overcame  them, 
and  made  this  city  the  capital  of  his  kingdom.  It 
was  builded  “  as  a  city  in  which  men  were  to  be 
united  together it  was  to  be  a  centre  of  unity  to 
the  whole  nation  of  Israel ,*  “  whither  the  tribes  go 
up,  the  tribes  of  the  Lord,  unto  the  testimony  of 
Israel.”*  Three  times  in  a  year  was  it  filled  with 
“  the  many  thousands  of  Israel”  who  went  to  the 
“  city  of  their  solemnities”  to  keep  the  appointed 
feasts.  From  the  sacred  bond  of  union  which  Je¬ 
rusalem  thus  formed,  it  was  regarded  with  holy 
veneration  ;  and  is  spoken  of  as  the  type  or  personi¬ 
fication  of  the  church.  “  If  I  forget  thee,  O  Jerusa¬ 
lem,  let  my  right  hand  forget  her  cunning  :”t 
“  Pray  for  the  peace  of  Jerusalem  ;  they  shall  pros¬ 
per  that  love  thee.”:}: 

It  was  in  the  days  of  Solomon  that  the  city  was 
in  the  height  of  its  glory  ;  when  he  “  made  silver  in 
Jerusalem  as  stones,  and  cedar  trees  as  the  syca¬ 
more  trees  ;”§  when  “  Judah  and  Israel  were  many, 
as  the  sand  which  is  by  the  sea  in  multitude  and 
“  dwelt  safely,  every  man  under  his  vine,  and  under 
his  fig  tree. ”|| 

When  thinking  of  its  former  magnificence,  and 


*  Psalm  cxxii.  3,  4.  t  Psalm  cxxxvii.  5. 

t  Psalm  cxxii.  6.  §  2  Chronicles  ix.  27. 

}]  1  Kings  iv;  *20,  25. 


JERUSALEM. 


119 


viewing  it  now,  how  appropriate  do  the  words  of 
Jeremiah  appear  !  “  How  doth  the  city  sit  solitary, 

that  was  full  of  people !  How  is  she  become  as  a 
widow  !  She  that  was  great  among  the  nations,  and 
princess  among  the  provinces,  how  ^  she  become 
tributary  !”  “  The  ways  of  Zion  do  mourn,  be¬ 

cause  none  come  to  the  solemn  feasts.”*  The  word 
of  the  Lord  went  forth  against  Jerusalem  ;  that  word 
which  is  “  a  fire,  and  a  hammer  that  breaketh  the 
rock  in  pieces.”  He  said  by  the  prophet  Micah  that 
“  Jerusalem  shall  become  heaps  ;”t  and  it  has  been 
literally  fulfilled.  The  modern  city  is  built  on  the 
heaps  of  rubbish  accumulated  by  the  ruins  of  ancient 
buildings.  So  great  are  these  heaps,  that  in  digging 
for  the  foundation  of  a  house,  they  have  to  go  to  an 
immense  depth  before  they  can  get  to  the  solid  rock. 
On  this  account  a  great  many  of  the  present  houses 
are  built  on  arches.  The  glory  and  magnificence 
of  Jerusalem  are  gone ;  she  is  in  bondage,  as  well 
as  her  children.  The  jealousy  of  her  Turkish  pos¬ 
sessors  is  ever  on  the  watch,  lest  any  thing  should 
seem  to  interfere  with  their  despotic  sway  ;  and  any 
material  change  in  her  condition,  while  they  continue 
to  have  the  rule,  appears  impossible. 

That  which  naturally  comes  to  be  described,  after 
the  city,  is  Mount  Zion  ;  the  whole  of  which  was 
anciently  enclosed  within  the  wall  of  the  city,  and 


*  Lament,  i.  1,  4. 


t  Mic.  iii.  12. 


120 


MOUNT  ZION. 


about  one-half  of  which  is  within  the  modern  city 
wall.  “  David  took  the  strong-hold  of  Zion,  the 
same  is  the  city  of  David ;  so  David  dwelt  in  the 
fort,  and  called  it  the  city  of  David.”*  This  con¬ 
tinued  the  ro^al  residence,  and  became  also  the 
burial-place  of  the  kings  ;  but  that  which  gave  it  a 
sacred  character,  and  made  it  afterwards,  like  Je¬ 
rusalem,  used  to  signify  the  church  and  nation  of 
Israel,  was  the  ark  of  God  being  placed  there  by 
David.  When  we  consider  that  the  ark  was  made 
by  the  express  command  of  God,  and  that  He  gave 
the  most  minute  directions  respecting  it,  we  cannot 
but  wonder  at  the  entire  oblivion  into  which  it  seems 
to  have  fallen  for  so  long  a  period.  For  upwards 
of  ninety  years,  that  is,  from  the  death  of  Eli,  until 
David  was  king  over  all  Israel,  the  ark  appears  to 
have  been  in  a  state  of  disuse.  We  hear  once,  it  is 
true,  of  Saul  calling  for  it  ;t  but  David  says  express¬ 
ly,  when  about  to  take  it  to  Mount  Zion,  “  Let  us 
bring  again  the  ark  of  our  God  to  us  ;  for  we  in¬ 
quired  not  at  it  in  the  days  of  Saul.”J  It  was  pro¬ 
bably  to  teach  Israel  again  to  honor  it,  as  the  visible 
symbol  of  His  presence,  that  God  saw  fit  to  cut  off 
Dzzah  for  his  rashness  in  touching  it.  This  judg¬ 
ment  seems  to  have  reminded  David  that  the  ark 
was  not  to  be  put  upon  “  a  new  cart,”  after  the  fash¬ 
ion  of  the  Philistines,  but  borne  upon  the  shoulders 
of  the  Levites. 


*  1  Sam.v.  7,9.  -j- 1  Sam.  xiv.  18.  t  1  Chron.  xiii.  3. 


MOUNT  ZION. 


121 


“  And  David  made  him  houses  in  the  city  of  Da¬ 
vid,  and  prepared  a  place  for  the  ark  of  God,  and 
pitched  for  it  a  tent.  Then  David  said  :  “  None 
ought  to  carry  the  ark  of  God  but  the  Levites ;  for 
them  hath  God  chosen  to  carry  the- ark  of  God.”* 
David  and  all  Israel  brought  up  the  ark  with  shout¬ 
ing  and  great  joy,  “  and  set  it  in  his  place,  in  the 
midst  of  the  tabernacle  that  David  had  pitched  for 
it.”t  From  this  time  until  the  building  of  the  tem¬ 
ple,  to  which  the  ark  was  removed,  Zion  was  the 
holy  place,  or  sanctuary  of  the  Lord  ;  and  the  name 
continued  ever  after  to  be  used  by  prophets  and  holy 
men,  to  designate  the  whole  of  Jerusalem,  including 
the  temple.  “  I  am  the  Lord  your  God  dwelling  in 
Zion,  My  holy  mountain. “  Is  not  the  Lord  in 
Zion 

What  now  remains  of  the  glory  of  Mount  Zion  ? 
Nothing.  Its  regal  splendor,  its  hallowed  sacred¬ 
ness,  are  gone :  “  Therefore  shall  Zion  for  your 
sake  be  plowed  as  a  field  was  the  word  of  the  in¬ 
spired  prophet  to  “  the  heads  of  the  house  of  Jacob, 
and  princes  of  the  house  of  Israel  ;”||  and  there  is 
now  a  field  of  barley  growing  on  Zion,  as  a  testi¬ 
mony  that  the  word  of  the  Lord  standeth  sure. 
Where  now  are  her  bulwarks  and  her  palaces, 
which  the  Psalmist  pointed  out  to  the  consideration 


*  1  Chron.  xv.  1,2.  j-  2  Sam.  vi.  17. 
§  Jer.  viii.  19.  ||  Mic.  iii.  9,  12. 

11 


4  Joel  iii.  17. 


122 


MOUNT  MORIAH. 


of  the  faithful?  They  are  swept  away  with  the 
besom  of  destruction. 

Mount  Zion  is  separated  by  a  narrow  valley  from 
Mount  Moriah,  a  locality  full  of  interesting  asso¬ 
ciations.  Here  the  father  of  the  faithful  was  put  to 
the  trying  test  of  offering  up  his  well-beloved  son. 
On  this  mount,  in  dutiful  submission  to  his  Heavenly 
and  his  earthly  father,  he  lay  bound,  from  whom 
afterwards  proceeded  the  many  thousands  of  Israel. 
When  Jerusalem  was  visited  with  pestilence,  as  a 
punishment  for  the  sin  of  David  in  numbering  the 
people,  it  was  on  this  mount  the  destroying  angel 
showed  himself.  It  was  at  that  time  the  property 
of  one  of  the  original  inhabitants  of  Jerusalem, 
Arauneh,  or  Oman,  the  Jebusite.  “  And  the  angel 
of  the  Lord  stood  by  the  threshing-floor  of  Oman 
the  Jebusite.  And  David  lifted  up  his  eyes,  and  saw 
the  angel  of  the  Lord  stand  between  the  earth  and 
the  heaven,  having  a  drawn  sword  in  his  hand, 
stretched  out  over  Jerusalem.”*  David  was  com¬ 
manded  to  erect  here  an  altar  unto  the  Lord,  and 
this  he  fixed  upon  as  the  place  whereon  the  temple 
should  be  built.  “  Then  David  said,  This  is  the 
house  of  the  Lord  God,  and  this  is  the  altar  of  the 
burnt-offering  for  Israelf’f  And  here,  in  due  time, 
was  the  magnificent  temple  reared  up  by  Solomon, 
the  peaceful  prince,  the  successor  of  Melchizedek, 


*  1  Chron.  xxi.  15,  16. 


•j-  Ibid.  xxi.  1. 


MOUNT  MORIAH. 


123 


“  king  of  Salem,  which  is  king  of  peace,”*  and  the 
type  of  that  “  Prince  of  Peace,”  who  shall  “  reign 
over  the  house  of  Jacob  for  ever.”f 

The  temple  of  Solomon,  with  its  courts,  occupied 
the  whole  summit  of  Mount  Moriah.  But  though  it 
was  “  exceeding  magnifical,  of  fame  and  of  glory 
throughout  all  countries, it  was  not  this  outward 
splendor  that  constituted  the  glory  of  the  temple ;  it 
was  the  shechinah,  the  abiding  presence  of  the  Lord, 
that  was  “  the  glory  in  the  midst  of  it.”  When  the 
building  was  completed,  and  Solomon  had  invoked 
the  presence  of  the  Lord,  He  condescended  to  take 
possession  of  the  habitation  prepared  for  him  :  “  Now 
when  Solomon  had  made  an  end  of  praying,  the  fire 
came  down  from  heaven,  and  consumed  the  burnt- 
offering  and  the  sacrifices ;  and  the  glory  of  the 
Lord  filled  the  house  ;”§  even  as  it  had  before  filled 
the  tabernacle  in  the  wilderness. ||  Here  was  the 
true  church  pointed  out  with  sufficient  clearness ;  to 
separate  from  this  was  indeed  schism.  This  visible 
manifestation  of  God’s  presence  continued  until  the 
commencement  of-  the  captivity.  In  the  visions  of 
Ezekiel,  we  have  a  detailed  account  of  the  departure 
of  the  glory  of  the  Lord  from  the  temple.  While  a 
captive  by  the  river  Chebar,  he  was  carried  “  in  the 
visions  of  God  to  Jerusalem,  to  the  door  of  the  inner 


*  Heb.  vii.  2. 

§  2  Chron.  vii.  1. 


j-  Luke  1.  33. 


t  1  Chron.  xxii.  5. 
I!  Exod.  xl.  34. 


124 


PROPHECY  OF  EZEKIEL. 


gate — and  behold,  the  glory  of  the  God  of  Israel 
was  there :  Then  said  he  unto  me, — Son  of  man, 
seest  thou  what  they  do,  even  the  great  abomina¬ 
tions  that  the  house  of  Israel  committeth  here,  that  I 
should  go  far  off  from  my  sanctuary  V ’* *  In  the  fol¬ 
lowing  part  of  the  vision  we  are  told  that  “  the  glory 
of  the  Lord  went  up  from  the  cherub  and  stood  over 
the  threshold  of  the  house  ;”f  the  glory  then  re¬ 
moves  to  “  the  east  gate  of  the  Lord’s  house  and 
finally  “  the  glory  of  the  Lord  went  up  from  the 
midst  of  the  city,  and  stood  upon  the  mountain  which 
is  on  the  east  side  of  the  city  ;”§  that  is,  the  Mount 
of  Olives. 

When  speaking  of  these  localities,  in  connection 
with  this  vision  of  the  departure  of  the  shechinah,  I 
cannot  resist  directing  my  reader’s  attention  to 
another  remarkable  vision  of  the  same  prophet  yet 
to  be  fulfilled.  The  latter  portion  of  Ezekiel’s  pro¬ 
phecy  is  occupied  with  the  subject  of  the  future  glory 
of  Israel ;  in  which,  doubtless,  “  there  are  many 
things  hard  to  be  understood but  this  much  is  very 
plain,  that  the  things  therein  predicted  did  not  come 
to  pass  at  the  return  from  Babylon.  Respecting  the 
“  house”  which  occupies  such  a  prominent  part  in 
that  vision,  I  offer  no  opinion ;  that  to  which  I  now 
wish  to  direct  attention  is,  the  return  of  the  glory  of 


*  Ezek.  viii.  3,  6. 

*  Ibid.  19. 


|  Ezek.  x.  4. 
§  Ibid.  xi.  23. 


PROPHECY  OF  EZEKIEL. 


125 


God,  whose  departure  we  have  just  seen  so  minutely 
described.  “Afterwards  he  brought  me  to  the  gate, 
even  the  gate  that  looketh  toward  the  east ;  and  be¬ 
hold,  the  glory  of  the  God  of  Israel  came  from  the 
way  of  the  east ;  and  his  voice  was  like  a  noise  of 
many  waters,  and  the  earth  shined  with  his  glory  ; — 
and  the  glory  of  the  Lord  came  into  the  house  by  the 
way  of  the  gate  whose  prospect  is  towards  the  east ; 
— and  behold,  the  glory  of  the  Lord  filled  the  house. 
And  he  said  unto  me :  Son  of  man,  the  place  of  my 
throne,  and  the  place  of  the  soles  of  my  feet,  where 
I  will  dwell  in  the  midst  of  the  children  of  Israel  for 
ever.”*  Compare  this  with  the  following  Scriptures  : 
“  My  tabernacle  also  shall  be  with  them ;  yea,  I  will 
be  their  God,  and  they  shall  be  my  people.  And  the 
heathen  shall  know  that  I  the  Lord  do  sanctify 
Israel,  when  my  sanctuary  shall  be  in  the  midst  of 
them  for  ever  more.”f  “And  his  feet  shall  stand  in 
that  day  upon  the  Mount  of  Olives,  which  is  before 
Jerusalem  on  the  east.  And  the  Lord  shall  be  king 
over  all  the  earth ;  in  that  day  shall  there  be  one 
Lord,  and  his  name  one.”:}:  “  And  I  heard  a  great 

voice  out  of  heaven,  saying,  Behold  the  tabernacle 
of  God  is  with  men,  and  he  will  dwell  with  them.”§ 
These  Scriptures  I  leave,  without  note  or  comment, 
to  the  consideration  of  the  Christian  reader. 


*  Ezek.  xliii.  1 — 7  f  Ibid,  xxxvii.  27,  28.  \ 

$  Zech.  xiv.  4,  9.  §  Rev.  xxi.  3. 

11* 


/ 


126 


FULFILMENT  OF  PROPHECY. 


We  have  seen  that  Zion  is  ploughed  as  a  field,  and 
Jerusalem  has  become  heaps ;  the  last  denunciation 
uttered  by  the  prophet  Micah  has  also  been  fulfilled, 
that  “the  mountain  of  the  house”  should  become 
“  as  the  high  places  of  a  forest.”  This  latter  expres¬ 
sion  signifies  the  places  where  the  worship  of  a  false 
religion  was  carried  on ;  the  “  high  places”  of  the 
heathen,  in  the  prophet’s  days,  being  always  in  a 
wood  or  grove.  This,  also,  has  been  fulfilled  to  the 
very  letter.  The  mosque  of  Omar,  the  sanctuary 
of  the  False  Prophet,  occupies  the  place  where  the 
temple  of  the  Lord  once  stood ;  and,  as  if  to  fulfil 
the  prophecy  more  minutely,  the  Mohammedans 
have  planted  around  it  cypress  and  orange  trees ;  so 
that,  looking  at  't  from  a  distance,  it  indeed  appears 
“  like  the  high  places  of  a  wood”  or  forest. 

It  may  be  instructive  to  inquire  why  God  has  thus 
permitted  that  which  He  has  Himself  called  “  My 
holy  mountain”  to  be  defiled  ;  “  What  meaneth  the 
heat  of  this  great  anger  ?”  He  has  condescended 
to  answer  this  question  very  plainly.  Before  pro¬ 
nouncing  the  denunciation  already  so  often  alluded 
to,  He  gives  the  reason  of  it :  “  They  build  up  Zion 
with  blood,  and  Jerusalem  with  iniquity.  The  heads 
thereof  judge  for  reward,  and  the  priests  thereof 
teach  for  hire,  and  the  prophets  thereof  divine  for 
money :  yet  will  they  lean  upon  the  Lord  and  say, 
Is  not  the  Lord  among  us  ?  None  evil  can  come 
upon  us.  Therefore  shall  Zion,  for  your  sake,  be 


STUDY  OF  PROPHECY. 


127 


plowed  as  a  field,  and  Jerusalem  shall  become  heaps, 
and  the  mountain  of  the  house  as  the  high  places  of 
the  forest.”* 

The  judgments  upon  Jerusalem  afford  an  example 
of  what  is  common  to  many  prophetic  intimations. 
The  predicted  consummation  was  viewed  by  the  pro¬ 
phet  as  a  great  whole ;  and  he  simply  announced  its 
ultimate  condition  as  one  great  event,  without  giving 
any  hint  that  it  was  produced  by  successive  events, 
occurring  at  different  times.  The  objection  so  often 
made  to  a  first  and  second  fulfilment  of  the  same 
prophecy  ought  to  be  silenced  at  once  by  what  we 
know  has  actually  taken  place  with  regard  to  Je¬ 
rusalem.  Its  desolation  is  always  spoken  of  in  the 
prophets  as  one  event ;  yet  it  has  had  two  distinct 
fulfilments,  at  a  distance  of  more  than  six  hundred 
years  from  each  other.  The  immediate  cause  of  its 
destruction  by  Nebuchadnezzar,  is  declared  by  God 
himself  to  have  been  the  idolatry  and  bloodshed  of 
Manasseh.  In  reference  to  that  overthrow,  the  Lord 
says :  “  I  will  wipe  Jerusalem  as  a  man  wipeth  a 
dish,  wiping  it  and  turning  it  upside  down.”j*  Those 
who  prayed  “  for  the  peace  of  Jerusalem”  were 
comforted  by  predictions  of  her  future  restoration. 
It  was  said  to  Jerusalem — u  Thou  shalt  be  built,  and 
to  the  temple,  thy  foundation  shall  be  laid.”J  Je¬ 
rusalem  and  the  temple  were  rebuilt  and  beautified. 


*  Micah  iii.  10 — 12.  j-  2  Kings  xxi.  13.  $  Isaiah  xliv.  28 


128 


REFLECTIONS. 


Who  that  saw  this  restoration  would  have  surmised 
that  a  second  destruction  more  complete,  and  a  se¬ 
cond  desolation  more  protracted,  yet  awaited  both  ? 
My  limits  prevent  me  from  pursuing  this  subject ;  I 
merely  throw  out  this  hint  to  the  diligent  student  of 
the  word  of  God,  that  the  successive  fulfilments  of 
the  same  prophecy,  and  the  announcement,  in  one 
prophecy,  of  two  events  as  simultaneous,  or  closely 
following  each  other,  which  in  reality  are  separated 
by  a  long  period,  is  the  true  key  to  many  of  the 
prophetic  Scriptures.  Could  any  one  discover  in 
the  prediction  uttered  by  John  the  Baptist,  that  the 
fulfilment  of  the  first  part  was  just  at  hand,  and  that 
of  the  latter  part  many  centuries  distant  ?  Between 
the  event  recorded  in  v.  11  of  Mat.  iii.  and  those 
events  recorded  in  v.  12,  the  whole  of  the  present 
dispensation  intervenes. 

To  return  to  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem,  it  is 
worthy  of  remark,  that  though  idolatry  was  one 
great  cause  of  its  destruction  by  the  Babylonians, 
the  Jews  were  generally  free  from  this  sin  after  the 
captivity.  Nor  was  there  any  want  of  attention  to 
the  outward  forms  of  religion.  In  our  Saviour’s 
time,  the  ordinances  seem  to  have  been  rigidly  ob¬ 
served.  Does  He  give  any  countenance  to  the  no¬ 
tion,  so  frequently  brought  forward  in  the  present 
day,  that  where  the  form  is,  we  are  bound  to  believe 
the  spirit  of  God  and  His  blessing  are  there  also  ? 
Did  He  tell  His  disciples  to  believe  that  purity  dwelt 


REFLECTIONS. 


129 


in  a  whited  sepulchre,  or  that  they  must  receive  a 
wolf  in  sheep’s  clothing  as  one  of  the  true  flock? 
No  ;  the  “  Spirit  of  Christ,”  whether  uttered  by  Him¬ 
self  or  by  the  mouth  of  the  prophet, *  spoke  the  same 
thing.  By  Isaiah,  He  said  of  the  ordinances  ap¬ 
pointed  by  His  own  command,  “  Incense  is  an 
abomination  to  Me ;  the  new  moons  and  sabbaths, 
the  calling  of  assemblies,  I  cannot  away  with  ;  it  is 
iniquity,  even  the  solemn  meeting.”!  By  Mica'll 
He  said,  as  we  have  already  seen,  that  the  ungodli¬ 
ness  of  the  rulers  and  teachers  of  the  Jewish  nation 
was  the  cause  why  Zion  should  be  ploughed  as  a  field; 
and  He  Himself  said,  “  Woe  unto  you,  Scribes  and 
Pharisees,  hypocrites,  for  ye  make  clean  the  outside 
of  the  cup  and  of  the  platter,  but  within  they  are 
full  of  extortion  and  excess  :”  “  Ye  devour  widows’ 
houses,  and  for  a  pretence  make  long  prayer  ;  there¬ 
fore  ye  shall  receive  the  greater  damnation.”! 

I  have  dwelt  at  some  length  on  this  subject,  be¬ 
cause  it  appears  to  me  one  of  great  importance.  Is 
it  not  awful  that  the  children  of  God  should  appear 
to  attach  some  holiness  to  that  which  they  know  to 
be  unholy, — which  they  know  God  sees  to  be  un¬ 
holy  ?  Are  there  now  no  religious  services  that  are 
an  abomination  to  Him  ;  no  “  solemn  meetings”  that 
He  cannot  away  with?  “  Woe  unto  them  that  call 
evil  good.” 


*  1  Peter  i.  11.  fglsaiah  i.  13.  J  Matt,  xxiii.  25,  14. 


130 


WALL  OF  THE  TEMPLE. 


Although,  according  to  our  Saviour’s  prediction, 
not  one  stone  of  the  temple  is  left  upon  another, 
there  is  every  reason  to  believe  that  the  foundations, 
and  some  of  the  lower  part  of  the  wall  that  now 
encloses  the  Mosque  of  Omar,  are  remains  of  the 
ancient  wall  that  enclosed  the  area  where  the  Tem¬ 
ple  stood.  In  one  part  there  is  distinctly  seen, 
springing  out  from  the  wall,  the  commencement  of 
an  arch  formed  of  very  large  stones,  which  has  evi¬ 
dently  belonged  to  the  bridge  that,  according  to 
Josephus,  connected  Mount  Zion  with  Mount  Moriah. 
At  another  portion  of  the  old  wall  the  Jews  assemble 
to  mourn  over  the  desolation  of  their  city  and  tem¬ 
ple.  After  the  revolt  of  the  Jews  under  Adrian, 
they  were  not  allowed  to  approach  the  Holy  City  ; 
“  and  it  was  not  till  the  age  of  Constantine  that  they 
were  permitted  to  approach  so  as  to  behold  Jerusa¬ 
lem  from  the  neighboring  hills.  At  length  they 
were  allowed  to  enter  the  city  once  a  year,  on  the 
day  on  which  it  was  taken  by  Titus,  in  order  to 
wail  over  the  ruins  of  the  temple.”* 

One  Friday  afternoon  Mr.  Caiman  took  M.  and 
me  to  the  Jews’  place  of  wailing.  After  going 
along  a  narrow  lane,  we  came  to  a  small  open  space, 
one  side  of  which  was  bounded  by  the  wall  that  sur¬ 
rounds  the  area  of  the  great  mosque.  The  lower 
part  of  this  wall  is  evidently  very  ancient ;  and  there 


*  Robinson’s  Bib.  Researches,!.  350. 


Jew’s  place  of  wailing.  131 

is  historical  evidence  that,  as  far  back  as  the  twelfth 
century,  the  Jews  regarded  it  as  having  belonged  to 
the  court  of  the  ancient  temple. 

The  scene  that  here  presented  itself  was  one  of 
the  most  striking  I  beheld  in  Jerusalem.  About 
thirty  men,  and  half  as  many  women,  were  assem¬ 
bled  together,  all  without  shoes,  the  ground  whereon 
they  trod  being  in  their  estimation  holy.  Some  were 
seated  on  the  ground  reading,  some  were  praying, 
and  others  kissing  the  wall.  I  entered  into  dflhver- 
sation  with  some  of  the  Polish  and  German  Jews, 
and  inquired  what  they  were  reading.  Several  were 
reading  portions  of  the  Psalms ;  other  the  Lamenta¬ 
tions  of  Jeremiah ;  and  one  venerable  looking  old 
man  was  reading  the  account  of  Solomon’s  dedication 
of  the  Temple,  recorded  in  1st  Kings,  viii.  Who 
could  not  sympathize  with  him  in  contemplating  the 
contrast  between  the  glorious  scene  therein  described 
and  the  present  desolation  of  the  city  and  temple  ? 
Nothing  could  give  a  more  vivid  picture  of  the  hu¬ 
miliation  of  Israel  than  these  poor  Jews,  strangers 
and  outcasts  in  what  used  to  be  their  own  city. 
“  The  Lord  hath  cast  off  his  altar,  he  hath  abhorred 
his  sanctuary,  he  hath  given  up  into  the  hand  of  the 
enemy  the  walls  of  her  palaces.”*  “  The  precious 
sons  of  Zion,  comparable  to  fine  gold,  how  are  they 
esteemed  as  earthen  pitchers,  the  work  of  the  hands 


*  Lament,  ii.  7. 


132 


ANCIENT  ERIDGE. 


of  the  potter  !”*  The  sons  of  Zion,  instead  of  being 
objects  of  interest  and  pity,  are  exposed  to  the  con¬ 
tempt  and  hatred,  not  only  of  the  Mohammedan  pos¬ 
sessors  of  their  city,  but  of  the  professors  of  false 
Christianity  who  dwell  in  it.  I  cannot  describe  the 
vividness  of  truth  with  which  the  words  came  home 
to  me,  as  I  listened  to  one  of  my  poor  brethren 
reading  the  12th  verse  of  the  1st  chapter  of  Lamen¬ 
tations, — “  Is  it  nothing  to  you,  all  ye  that  pass  by  ? 
Behold  and  see  if  there  be  any  sorrow  like  unto  my 
sorrow,  which  is  done  unto  me,  wherewith  the  Lord 
hath  afflicted  me  in  the  day  of  his  fierce  anger.” 

W e  went  from  this  spot  to  examine  more  minutely 
the  fragment  of  the  arch,  that  interesting  relic  which 
so  clearly  demonstrates  the  antiquity  of  the  portion 
of  the  wall  to  which  it  belongs,  and  which  is  a  strong 
presumptive  evidence  that  those  parts  of  the  walls 
that  are  of  similar  architecture  are  equally  ancient. 
M.  measured  three  of  the  stones  that  compose  this 
fragment,  and  found  them  respectively  twenty -one, 
twenty-three,  and  twenty-five  feet  in  length.  The 
distance  from  this  point  to  the  precipitous  rock  of 
Zion,  on  the  other  side  of  the  valley,  w'as  measured 
by  Dr.  Robinson,  and  found  to  be  three  hundred  and 
fifty  feet,  which  was  probably  the  length  of  the  bridge 
that  united  the  two  mounts  together :  joining  the 
royal  residence  to  the  house  of  God.  While  stand- 


*  Lament,  iv.  2. 


POOL  OF  SILOAM. 


133 


ing  in  the  valley  between  these  renowned  eminences, 
and  examining  the  remnant  of  the  bridge  that  united 
them,  it  was  interesting  to  remember  that  Moriah 
belonged  to  the  tribe  of  Benjamin,  and  Zion  to  Judah, 
These  two  brethren  have  always  been  peculiarly 
united.  “  Send  the  lad  with  me,”  said  Judah  to  his 
father;  “  I  will  be  surety  for  him.”*  When  the  ten 
tribes  revolted  from  the  house  of  David  these  two 
remained  loyal :  and  to  this  day  the  descendants  of 
these  two  brethren  continue  united  in  suffering,  wan¬ 
dering  together  over  the  wide  world,  without  a 
country  or  a  home. 

At  the  other  end  of  the  same  valley  is  the  pool 
of  Siloam,  a  reservoir  for  water,  surrounded  by 
ancient  walls  of  hewn  stone.  It  was  in  this  pool 
our  Lord  desired  the  blind  man  to  wash  after  He  had 
anointed  his  eyes  with  clay.  The  water  that  sup¬ 
plies  the  pool  comes  from  a  fountain,  or  perhaps  it 
may  rather  be  called  another  pool,  nearly  a  quarter 
of  a  mile  distant,  a  channel  being  cut  through  the 
hill  from  the  one  to  the  other.  It  has  been  conjec¬ 
tured,  and  there  is  great  reason  for  the  supposition, 
that  the  upper  pool  (which  is  now  called  the  Foun¬ 
tain  of  the  Virgin)  is  itself  supplied  by  a  spring  that 
rises  in  Mount  Moriah,  immediately  under  the  site 
of  the  Temple.  There  is  a  spring  or  fountain 
directly  under  the  mosque  of  Omar,  of  the  water 


*  Gen.  xliii.  8,  9. 
12 


134 


GARDEN  OF  GETIISEMANE. 


of  which  Dr.  Robinson’s  drank,  and  found  it  had 
the  same  peculiar  taste  he  had  remarked  in  the  water 
of  Siloam.  This  reminds  one  of  the  vision  of  Eze¬ 
kiel,  in  which  he  saw  waters  proceeding  “  from 
under  the  right  side  of  the  house  at  the  south  side 
of  the  altar  and  of  the  prophetic  declaration  of 
Joel  respecting  the  latter  days,  that  then  “  a  fountain 
shall  come  forth  of  the  house  of  the  Lord.”f 

“  Jesus  went  forth  with  his  disciples  over  the  brook 
Cedron,  where  was  a  garden.  And  Judas  knew  the 
place,  for  Jesus  ofttimes  resorted  thither  with  his 
disciples.”^:  The  brook  Cedron  or  Kidron,  is  now 
only  a  dry  channel,  through  which  no  stream  flows, 
except  during  the  heavy  rains  of  winter ;  but  on 
crossing  it,  near  the  north-east  corner  of  the  city, 
you  come  to  a  plat  of  ground,  enclosed  with  a  stone 
wall,  which  has  long  been  pointed  out  as  the  Garden 
of  Gethsemane  ;  and  as  the  situation  corresponds  to 
the  place  described  in  the  Gospel  narrative,  being 
near  the  Mount  of  Olives,  there  is  little  reason  to 
doubt  that  in  or  near  this  spot  the  mysterious  agony 
of  our  blessed  Lord,  when  he  “  offered  up  prayers 
and  supplications  with  strong  crying  and  tears  unto 
him  that  was  able  to  save  him  from  death, ”§  took 
place.  In  this  enclosure  are  eight  very  old  olive 
trees.  I  felt  this  a  solemn  spot ;  it  was  impossible 


*Ezek.  xlvii.  1. 

$  John  xviii.  1,  2. 


f  Joel  iff.  18. 
§  Heb.  v.  7. 


GARDEN  OF  GETHSEMANE. 


135 


to  visit  it,  for  the  first  time  at  least,  without  a  lively 
recollection  of  Him  who  “  poured  out  his  soul  unto 
death.”  I  felt  how  natural  to  the  human  mind  is 
the  worship  of  the  visible, — the  love  of  relics.  I 
could  not  resist  pulling  many  twigs  of  those  ancient 
olive  trees.  It  is  easy  to  understand  how,  from  the 
time  of  Peter  unto  the  present  day,  men  should  be 
disposed  to  say,  when  deeply  impressed  in  a  parti¬ 
cular  spot,  “  let  us  build  a  tabernacle”  here ;  but 
even  if  experience  had  not  shown  the  futility  of  such 
attempts  to  perpetuate  the  impression,  I  believe  the 
principle  is  in  itself  wrong,  as  tending  to  encourage 
a  low  estimate  of  the  degree  in  which  God’s  pre¬ 
sence  may  be  now  enjoyed.  If  we  really  believe 
that  where  two  or  three  are  gathered  together  in 
Christ’s  name,  He  is  there  in  the  midst  of  them, 
actually,  though  invisibly,  present,  we  ought  to  feel 
that  to  us  the  place  where  he  is  now  present  in  spirit 
is  more  holy  than  the  place  where  He  was  in  person 
many  hundred  years  ago  ;  and  thus  the  upper  room, 
the  open  field,  or  our  own  private  chamber  where 
God  condescends  to  meet  with  us,  should  be  to  us 
“  none  other  than  the  house  of  God  and  the  gate  of 
heaven.”  I  firmly  believe,  that  if  we  seek  to  affect 
the  mind  by  the  aid  of  architecture,  painting,  or 
music,  the  impression  produced  by  these  adjuncts  is 
just  so  much  subtracted  from  the  worship  of  the 
unseen  Jehovah.  If  the  outward  eye  is  taken  up 
with  material  splendor,  or  forms  of  external  beauty, 


136 


MOUNT  OF  OLIVES. 


the  mind’s  eye  sees  but  little  of  “  Him  who  is  invi¬ 
sible;”  the  ear  that  is  entranced  with  the  melody  of 
sweet  sounds,  listens  not  to  the  “  still  small  voice” 
by  which  the  Lord  makes  his  presence  known. 

Gethsemane  is  situated  near  the  base  of  the  Mount 
of  Olives,  lying  at  a  little  to  the  right  of  the  path 
which  leads  to  the  top  of  the  Mount.  This  mount 
might  almost  be  called  the  home  of  Jesus  when  he 
was  in  Jerusalem  :  “  In  the  day  time  he  was  teach¬ 
ing  in  the  temple ;  and  at  night  he  went  out  and 
abode  in  the  mount  that  is  called  the  Mount  of 
Olives  yea,  when  “  every  man  went  into  his  own 
house,  Jesus  went  unto  the  Mount  of  Olives  ;”f 
while  the  foxes  have  holes,  and  the  birds  of  the  air 
have  nests,  the  Son  of  Man  had  not  where  to  lay 
His  head. 

After  walking  for  about  half  an  hour  up  a  rather 
steep  ascent,  we  came  to  the  highest  summit  of  the 
mount.  From  this  there  is  an  extensive  view,  it  be¬ 
ing  the  highest  point  in  the  immediate  vicinity  of 
Jerusalem.  The  Dead  Sea  is  distinctly  seen,  and 
the  valley  of  the  Jordan,  which  may  be  traced  out 
by  the  narrow  strip  of  verdure  which  distinguishes 
its  banks  from  the  more  “  dry  and  barren  land” 
around. 

How  many  associations  crowd  into  the  mind  on 
this  mount?  When  David  went  forth  from  Jerusa- 


*  Luke  xxi.  37. 


f  John  vii.  53  ;  viii.  1. 


MOUNT  OF  OLIVES. 


137 


lem,  on  the  rebellion  of  his  son  Absalom,  he  “  went 
up  by  the  ascent  of  Mount  Olivet,  and  wept  as  he 
went  up,  and  had  his  head  covered,  and  he  went 
barefoot.'”*  While  in  this  state  of  humiliation,  did 
not  the  Holy  Spirit  lead  the  royal  prophet  beyond 
his  own  sufferings,  to  those  of*his  Son  and  his  Lord, 
who  afterwards  spent  so  many  nights  on  this  same 
spot,  pouring  out  His  soul  in  agony  for  the  sins  of 
men  ?  Who  knows  how  many  of  those  psalms,  in 
which  are  blended  the  utterances  of  the  feeble  and 
sinful  David,  and  the  utterances  of  Him  who, 

“  though  He  knew  no  sin,”  was  “  made  sin  for  us,” 
were  suggested  to  the  mind  of  the  Psalmist,  as  he 
walked,  weeping  and  barefoot  up  this  mount ! 

It  was  here  that  Jesus  sat  with  his  disciples,  when 
he  delivered  to  them  the  prophetic  announcement  of 
the  destruction  of  Jerusalem,  and  of  the  events  that 
characterise  “  the  great  and  terrible  day  of  the 
Lord,”  of  which  the  judgments  on  Jerusalem  were  * 
a  type. 

A  very  ancient  tradition  makes  the  Mount  of 
Olives  the  scene  of  the  ascension  ;  but  it  is  express¬ 
ly  said  in  Scripture  that  Jesus  “  led  them  out  as  far 
as  Bethany ;”  which  is  about  half  a  mile  beyond  it, 
on  the  road  from  Jerusalem  to  Jericho.  In  Acts  i. 

12,  it  is  true,  we  are  told  that  the  disciples  “  return¬ 
ed  unto  Jerusalem  from  the  mount  called  Olivet ;” 


*  2  Samuel  xv.  30. 
12* 


138 


MOUNT  OF  OLIVES. 


but  this  involves  no  contradiction.  The  nearest  road 
from  Bethany  to  Jerusalem  is  directly  across  the 
Mount  of  Olives ;  and  what  more  natural  than  that, 
after  having  parted  from  their  beloved  Master,  they 
should  linger  for  a  while  in  the  place  where  they 
had  so  often  taken  sweet  counsel  with  Him  ?  The 
men  “  in  white  apparel”  had  said  to  them,  “  This 
same  Jesus  which  is  taken  up  from  you  into  heaven, 
shall  so  come  in  like  manner  as  ye  have  seen  him 
go  into  heaven  and  Zechariah  had  prophecied  in 
connexion  with  the  final  affliction  of  Jerusalem,  that 
“  His  feet  shall  stand  in  that  day  upon  the  Mount  of 
Olives.”  May  we  not  suppose  that  on  coming  to 
the  spot  where,  a  few  weeks  before  Jesus  had  told 
them  “  the  signs  of  his  coming,  and  of  the  end  of 
the  world,”  that  they  tarried  for  a  time,  before  re¬ 
turning  to  the  bustle  of  the  city,  to  “  comfort  one 
another”  with  anticipations  of  their  Lord’s  return ; 
that  here  “  they  worshipped  him,”  and  were  thus 
enabled  to  “  return  to  Jerusalem  with  great  joy  ?”f 
Bethany  is  a  mean  village,  containing  about 
twenty  families  ;  but  is  deeply  interesting  from  hav¬ 
ing  been  the  abode  of  those  whom  Jesus  loved  ;  the 
place  to  which  He  so  often  resorted  to  enjoy  the 
sympathy  and  friendship  of  a  pious  family,  after 
having  “  endured  the  contradiction  of  sinners  against 
himself.”  How  interesting  to  contemplate  the  holy, 


*  Acts  i.  11. 


t  Lake  xxiv.  52. 


BETHANY. 


139 


£ 

yet  real  humanity  of  Christ !  That  He  who  was 
“  Lord  of  all”  should  condescend  to  bestow  a  spe¬ 
cial  love  on  some  of  His  disciples !  Possibly  it  was 
to  take  a  last  farewell  of  this  family,  that  He  “led 
them  out  as  far  as  Bethany”  before  leaving  the 
earth. 

The  pretended  house  and  tomb  of  Lazarus,  to¬ 
gether  with  the  house  of  Simon  the  Leper,  are 
shown  at  Bethany  ;  but  these,  and  all  similar  tradi¬ 
tions,  are  generally  fictions  of  the  fourth  century, 
or  later  ;  and  in  many  cases  are  not  merely  doubt¬ 
ful,  but  directly  opposed  to  the  scriptural  account. 
After  the  professed  conversion  of  the  Emperor  Con¬ 
stantine  to  Christianity,  pilgrimages  to  the  Holy 
City  became  the  fashion  of  the  day ;  his  mother  He¬ 
lena  went  thither  at  the  age  of  eighty  ;  and  caused 
churches  to  be  built  at  Bethlehem  and  the  Mount  of 
Olives,  to  commemorate  the  nativity  and  the  ascen¬ 
sion.  This  continued  the  fashion  of  the  religious 
world  for  many  succeeding  centuries  :  and  each  cen¬ 
tury  presented  some  new  discovery  of  a  venerated 
locality,  and  the  erection  of  a  church  or  monastery 
on  the  supposed  site  of  a  memorable  place  or  scene 
of  a  remarkable  event.  In  due  time  all  these  dis¬ 
coveries  came  to  be  ascribed  to  Helena  ;  and  al¬ 
though  in  the  writings  of  her  contemporaries  she  is 
only  said  to  have  built  the  two  churches  above  men¬ 
tioned,  “  in  the  fourteenth  century  not  less  than 
thirty  churches  were  ascribed  to  her  within  the 


140 


REMARKABLE  TOMBS. 


limits  of  Palestine.”*  These  “  lying  vanities”  met 
us  at  every  stage  of  our  journey  in  the  Holy  Land  ; 
but  so  far  from  thinking  any  of  them  worthy  of  no¬ 
tice,  I  conceive  they  would  only  be  to  my  readers, 
as  they  were  to  myself,  an  impertinent  annoyance, 
destroying  hallowed  associations,  and  tending  to 
make  one  view  with  suspicion  all  reported  localities 
of  ancient  places.  With  very  few  exceptions,  there¬ 
fore,  I  pass  over  in  silence  the  monkish  traditions. 

On  the  east  side  of  the  valley  of  Jehoshaphat  are 
four  remarkable  tombs,  hewn  out  of  the  solid  rock, 
to  which  are  now  given  the  names  of  Jehoshaphat, 
Absalom,  St.  James,  and  Zecharias.  In  the  earlier 
notices  of  these,  different  names  are  assigned  to 
them  ;  so  that  all  that  is  said  about  them  is  mere 
conjecture.  A  thought  struck  me  in  regard  to 
them,  which  I  merely  throw  out  as  a  possibility, 
without  pretending  to  assert  its  correctness.  These 
tombs  are  held  in  high  estimation  by  the  Jews ;  they 
visit  them  and  pray  beside  them.  I  met  many  Jews 
at  the  tomb  of  Zecharias,  some  of  whom  were  in¬ 
scribing  their  names  upon  it.  They,  in  common 
with  the  Christians,  call  this  the  tomb  of  Zechariah, 
the  son  of  Barachiah.  I  regret  that  I  omitted  to  ask 
them  by  what  name  they  call  the  one  allotted  by  the 
Christians  to  St.  James.  The  style  of  architecture, 


*  Robinson’s  Bib,  Res.  ii.  16. 


TOMBS. 


141 


being  mingled  Grecian  and  Egyptian,  shows  them 
to  be  comparatively  modern.  “  If  they  existed  pri¬ 
or  to  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem,”  says  Robinson, 
“  they  are  probably  to  be  referred  to  the  times  of 
the  Herodes.”*  Supposing  this  to  be  the  case,  their 
construction  would,  in  the  time  of  our  Saviour,  be  a 
recent  event ;  and  as  we  know,  that  even  under 
their  vassalage  to  the  Romans,  there  were  some 
rich  men  ar^ong  the  Jews,  such  as  Joseph  of  Ari- 
mathea,  who  had  tombs  for  themselves  which  they 
had  “  hewn  out  in  the  rock,”t  it  is  at  least  not  im¬ 
probable  that  all,  or  some  of  these  tombs,  may  have 
been  erected,  or,  more  correctly  speaking,  “  hewn 
out,”  by  the  more  wealthy  of  the  Scribes  and  Pha¬ 
risees,  in  honor  of  some  of  the  prophets.  May  it 
not  be  in  allusion  to  these  very  tombs  that  our  Lord 
says,  “  Woe  unto  you  Scribes  and  Pharisees,  hypo¬ 
crites  !  because  ye  build  the  tombs  of  the  prophets, 
and  garnish  the  sepulchres  of  the  righteous,  and 
say,  If  we  had  been  in  the  days  of  our  fathers,  we 
would  not  have  been  partakers  with  them  in  the 
blood  of  the  prophets.”  Then,  after  relating  how 
they  would  deal  with  the  first  preachers  of  the  gos¬ 
pel,  He  adds  :  “  That  upon  you  may  come  all  the 
righteous  blood  shed  upon  the  earth,  from  the  blood 
of  righteous  Abel,  unto  the  blood  of  Zacharias,  son 


*  Bib.  Researches,  i.  521. 


f  Matt,  xxvii.  60. 


142 


GREEK  AND  ROMISH  CHURCHES. 


of  Barachias  one  of  the  prophets  to  whose  me¬ 
mory  they  had  lately  made  a  monument. 

It  is  painful  to  the  child  of  God  to  behold  the 
mosque  of  the  false  prophet  stand  where  that  temple 
once  stood,  in  which  God  manifested  his  presence 
by  the  shechinah  ;  it  is  melancholy  to  see  God’s 
ancient  people  in  darkness  and  ignorance,  oppressed 
and  despised,  in  their  own  city  ;  but  it  is  even  more 
sad  to  see  there  the  mixture  of  folly,  falsehood,  and 
wickedness,  that  calls  itself  Christianity.  I  have 
elsewhere  mentioned!  the  effect  necessarily  produced 
on  the  minds  of  my  brethren,  the  Jews,  by  the  false 
representation  of  the  Christian  religion  exhibited  to 
them  by  the  Papists  in  Poland  and  Germany ;  but 
here,  where  the  Lord  from  heaven  Himself  intro¬ 
duced  a  new  and  spiritual  dispensation,  the  exhibi¬ 
tion  of  folly  and  blasphemy  presented  by  the  Greek 
and  Romish  churches,  exceeds,  perhaps,  what  is  to 
be  met  with  elsewhere.  The  palm  of  superiority  in 
evil,  however,  must  be  accorded  to  the  Greek  and 
other  Eastern  churches,  whose  exhibitions  during 
Easter  have  no  parallel  except  in  the  rites  of 
the  heathen.  As  I  did  not  arrive  in  Jerusalem 
until  three  weeks  after  the  Greek  Easter,  I  did  not 
myself  witness  the  extraordinary  scenes  that  are 


*  Matt,  xxiii.  29,  35. 

f  Brief  Sketch  of  the  Present  State  and  Future  Expecta¬ 
tion  of  the  Jews. 


CHURCH  OF  THE  HOLY  SEPULCHRE.  143 

yearly  enacted  in  the  Church  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre  : 
but  my  friend,  Mr.  Caiman,  who  has  resided  seve¬ 
ral  years  in  Jerusalem,  has  kindly  permitted  me  to 
publish  a  letter  written  by  him  to  a  friend  in  Eng¬ 
land,  immediately  after  he  had  witnessed  the  melan¬ 
choly  and  revolting  spectacle. 

During  the  Greek  Easter  week,  Jerusalem  is  re¬ 
sorted  to  by  thousands  of  pilgrims,  not  only  from  all 
parts  of  Palestine  and  Syria,  but  even  from  such 
distant  places  as  Syra,  Smyrna,  and  Constantinople. 
Last  Easter  it  was  computed  that  not  less  than  ten 
thousand  persons  were  present.  This  holy  fair  is 
celebrated  with  revellings  and  jollity,  nearly  akin  to 
those  of  secular  meetings  that  go  under  the  same 
name. 

The  Church  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre  is  a  pile  of 
clumsy  buildings,  professing  to  cover,  in  most  con¬ 
venient  juxta-position,  both  Calvary  and  the  tomb  of 
Christ ;  and  furnished  after  the  most  approved  fash¬ 
ion  of  monkish  falsehood  and  audacity,  with  every 
thing  that  can  be  thought  of,  connected  with  the 
great  event  thus  shamefully  desecrated  ;  of  all  of 
which,  it  may  be  said  truly,  in  the  words  of  the 
Scotch  deputation,  “  the  wonder  is,  that  the  writers 
(‘  of  travels’)  should  have  been  so  careful  in  describ¬ 
ing  what  no  serious  mind  can  regard  but  as  ‘  lying 
wonders.’  ”* 


0 

*  Narrative  of  a  Mission  of  Enquiry  to  the  Jews,  p.  185. 


144 


SCENE  IN  THE  HOLY  SEPULCHRE. 


This  church,  and  the  relics  it  contains,  are  the 
great  objects  of  attraction  to  the  pilgrims ;  and  here, 
on  the  last  day  of  the  week,  is  performed  the  impi¬ 
ous  juggle  of  the  holy  fire.  Omitting  the  first  part 
of  Mr.  Caiman’s  letter,  I  extract  the  portion  that  re¬ 
lates  to  this  blasphemous  imposture  of,  what  the 
advocates  of  apostolic  succession  denominate,  “  a 
sister  church.” 

“  Having  thus  given  a  brief  outline  of  the  edifice, 
I  shall  now  proceed  to  describe  the  ceremony  I  have 
alluded  to,  namely,  that  of  the  miraculous  Greek 
fire,  which  takes  place  on  the  Saturday  of  the  Greek 
Easter  week ;  and  which  serves,  in  the  hands  of  the 
Greek  and  Armenian  priests,  the  same  purpose  that 
the  keys  of  Peter  do  in  the  hands  of  his  skilful  suc¬ 
cessors,  the  Popes :  it  unlocks  every  coffer  and 
purse  of  the  pilgrims,  and  renders  them  at  the  dis¬ 
posal  of  the  inventors  and  perpetrators  of  this  lying 
wonder. 

“  To  notice  all  that  was  passing  within  the  church 
of  the  Holy  Sepulchre  during  the  space  of  more 
than  twenty-four  hours,  would  be  next  to  impossible ; 
because  it  was  one  continuation  of  shameless  mad¬ 
ness  and  rioting,  which  would  have  been  a  disgrace 
to  Greenwich  and  Smithfield  fairs.  Only  suppose 
for  a  moment  the  mighty  edifice  crowded  to  excess 
with  fanatic  pilgrims  of  all  the  Eastern  churches, 
who,  instead  of  lifting  up  pure  hands  to  God,  without 
wrath  and  quarrelling,  are  led  by  the  petty  jealousies 


SCENE  IN  THE  SEPULCHRE. 


145 


about  the  precedency  which  they  should  maintain  in 
the  order  of  their  processions,  into  tumults  and  fight¬ 
ings,  which  can  only  be  quelled  by  the  scourge  and 
whip  of  the  followers  of  the  false  prophet.  Suppose 
further,  these  thousands  of  devotees  running  from 
one  extreme  to  the  other, — from  the  extreme  of 
savage  irritation  to  that  of  savage  enjoyment,  of 
mutual  revellings  and  feastings ;  like  Israel  of  old, 
who,  when  they  made  the  golden  calf,  were  eating, 
and  drinking,  and  rising  up  to  pla^ .  Suppose  troops 
of  men,  stripped  half  naked  to  facilitate  their  actions, 
running,  trotting,  jumping,  galloping,  to  and  fro,  the 
breadth  and  length  of  the  ehurch ;  walking  on  their 
hands  with  their  feet  aloft  in  the  air  ,*  mounting  on 
one  another’s  shoulders,  some  in  a  riding,  and  some 
in  a  standing  position,  and  by  the  slightest  push  are 
all  sent  d^wn  to  the  ground  in  one  confused  heap, 
which  made  one  fear  for  their  safety.  Suppose  fur¬ 
ther,  many  of  the  pilgrims  dressed  in  fur  caps,  like 
the  Polish  JewTs,  whom  they  feigned  to  represent, 
and  whom  the  mob  met  with  all  manner  of  contempt 
and  insult,  hurrying  them  through  the  church  as 
criminals  who  had  been  just  condemned,  amid  loud 
execrations  and  shouts  of  laughter,  which  indicated 
that  Israel  is  still  a  derision  amongst  these  heathens, 
by  whom  they  are  still  counted  as  sheep  for  the 
slaughter.  All  these,  and  similar  proceedings  marked 
the  introduction  of  this  holy  miraculous  fire ;  and 
when  questioned  about  the  propriety  of  such  con- 

13 


146 


MIRACULOUS  FIRE. 


duct  within  a  Christian  place  of  worship,  and  with 
the  name  of  religion,  the  priests  will  tell  you,  that 
they  once  tried  to  get  quit  of  these  absurdities,  and 
the  holy  fire  was  withdrawn  in  consequence  of  it ! 
f  “About  two  o’clock  on  Saturday  afternoon,  the 
preparations  for  the  appearance  of  the  miraculous 
fire  commenced.  The  multitude,  who  had  been  here¬ 
tofore  in  a  state  of  frenzy  and  madness,  became  a 
little  more  quiet ;  but  it  proved  a  quiet  that  precedes 
a  thunderstorm.  Bishops  and  priests  in  their  full 
canonicals,  then  issued  forth  from  their  respective 
quarters,  with  flags  and  banners,  crucifixes  and 
crosses,  lighted  candles  and  smoking  cencers,  to  join 
or  rather  to  lead,  a  procession,  which  moved  thrice 
round  the  church,  invoking  every  picture,  altar,  and 
relic,  in  their  way,  to  aid  them  in  obtaining  the  mira¬ 
culous  fire.  The  procession  then  returned  to  the 
place  from  whence  it  started,  and  two  grey-headed 
bishops,  the  one  of  the  Greek,  the  other  of  the  Ar¬ 
menian  church,  were  hurled  by  the  soldiers  through 
the  crowd,  into  the  apartment  which  communicates 
with  that  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre,  where  they  locked 
themselves  in  ;  there  the  marvellous  fire  was  to  make 
its  first  appearance,  and  from  thence  issue  through 
the  small  circular  windows  and  the  door,  for  the  use 
of  the  pilgrims.  The  eyes  of  all,  men,  women,  and 
children,  were  now  directed  towards  the  Holy  Sepul¬ 
chre  with  an  anxious  suspense,  awaiting  the  issue 
of  their  expectation. 


MIRACULOUS  FIRE. 


147 


“  The  mixed  multitude,  each  in  his  or  her  own 
language,  were  pouring  forth  their  clamorous  prayers 
to  the  Virgin  and  the  saints,  to  intercede  for  them 
on  behalf  of  the  object  for  which  they  were  assem¬ 
bled  ;  and  the  same  were  tenfold  increased  by  the 
fanatic  gestures  and  the  waving  of  the  garments  by 
the  priests  of  the  respective  communions  who  were 
interested  in  the  holy  fire,  and  who  were  watching 
by  the  above-mentioned  door  and  circular  windows, 
with  torches  in  their  hands,  ready  to  receive  the 
virgin  flame  of  the  heavenly  fire,  and  convey  it  to 
their  flocks.  In  about  twenty  minutes  from  the  time 
the  bishops  locked  themselves  in  the  apartment  of  the 
Holy  Sepulchre  the  miraculous  fire  made  its  appear¬ 
ance  through  the  door  and  the  two  small  windows, 
as  expected.  The  priests  were  the  first  who  lighted 
their  torches,  and  they  set  out  on  a  gallop  in  the 
direction  of  their  lay  brethren :  but  some  of  these 
errandless  and  profitless  messengers  had  the  misfor¬ 
tune  to  be  knocked  down  by  the  crowd,  and  had  their 
firebrands  wrested  out  of  their  hands  ;  but  some  were 
more  fortunate,  and  safely  reached  their  destination, 
around  whom  the  people  flocked  like  bees,  to  have 
their  candles  lighted.  Others,  however,  were  not 
satisfied  at  having  the  holy  fire  second  hand,  but 
rushed  furiously  towards  the  Holy  Sepulchre,  regard¬ 
less  of  their  own  safety,  and  that  of  those  who  ob¬ 
structed  their  way ;  though  it  has  frequently  hap¬ 
pened  that  persons  have  been  trampled  to  death  on 


148 


MIRACULOUS  FIRE. 


such  occasions.  Those  who  were  in  the  galleries 
let  down  their  candles  by  cords,  and  drew  them  up 
when  they  had  succeeded  in  their  purpose.  In  a 
few  minutes  thousands  of  flames  were  ascending,  the 
smoke  and  the  heat  of  which  rendered  the  church 
like  the  bottomless  pit.  To  satisfy  themselves,  as 
well  as  to  convince  the  Latins,  (who  grudge  so  pro¬ 
fitable  as  well  as  so  effectual  a  piece  of  machinery 
being  in  the  hands  of  the  schismatical  Greeks  and 
Armenians,  and  one  which  augments  the  power  of 
the  priest  and  the  revenue  of  the  convents,  and  who, 
therefore,  exclaim  against  the  miraculous  fire,)  the 
pilgrims,  women,  as  well  as  men,  shamefully  expose 
their  bare  bosoms  to  the  action  of  the  flame  of  their 
lighted  candles,  to  make  their  adversaries  believe  the 
miraculous  fire  differs  from  an  ordinary  one,  in  being 
perfectly  harmless.  The  two  bishops,  who  a  little 
while  before  locked  themselves  in  the  apartment  of 
the  Holy  Sepulchre,  now  sallied  forth  out  of  it. 
When  the  whole  multitude  had  their  candles  lighted, 
the  bishops  were  caught  by  the  crowd,  lifted  upon 
their  shoulders,  and  carried  to  their  chapels  amidst 
loud  and  triumphant  acclamations.  They  soon, 
however,  re-appeared,  at  the  head  of  a  similar  pro¬ 
cession  as  the  one  before,  as  a  pretended  thank-offer¬ 
ing  to  the  Almighty  for  the  miraculous  fire  vouchsafed, 
thus  daring  to  make  God  a  partaker  in  their  lie. 
An  express  messenger  was  immediately  sent  off  to 
Bethlehem,  the  birth-place  of  Christ,  to  inform  the 


LETTER  OF  THE  ARCHBISHOP. 


149 


brethren  there,  and  to  invite  them  also  to  offer  up 
their  tribute  of  thanks  for  the  transcendant  glory  of 
the  day.  Thus  closed  the  lying  wonders  of  the  holy 
week  of  Easter.,, 

Such  is  the  picture  of  Christianity  annually  pre¬ 
sented  to  the  eyes  of  the  Mohammedans  ;  and  though 
no  Jews  are  permitted  to  witness  it,  they  hear  of  it 
from  their  Musselman  neighbors,  with  whom  they 
are  on  more  friendly  terms  than  they  are  with  the 
Christians.  Surely  the  very  first  act  of  any  mis¬ 
sion  to  the  Jews  ought  to  have  been  to  testify  against, 
and  to  repudiate  all  alliance  with  those  apostate 
Eastern  churches,  in  order  to  convince  them  that 
they  came  to  teach  a  Christianity  very  different  from 
any  thing  that  goes  by  that  name  in  Jerusalem  ;  and 
therefore  every  Christian  must  regret  this  not  being 
the  case  with  the  present  mission  there,  but  that  the 
following  letter  was  sent  instead  : 

“  Letter  commendatory  from  the  Most  Rev.  the 
Lord  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  dec. 

“  To  the  Right  Reverend  our  Brothers  in  Christ, 
the  Prelates  and  Bishops  of  the  ancient  and  Apos¬ 
tolic  Churches  in  Syria,  and  the  countries  adja¬ 
cent,  greeting  in  the  Lord. 

“  We,  William,  by  Divine  Providence,  Archbishop 
of  Canterbury,  Primate  of  all  England,  and  Metro¬ 
politan,  most  earnestly  commend  to  your  brotherly 
love  the  Right  Rev.  Michael  Solomon  Alexander, 
Doctor  in  Divinity,  whom  we,  being  well  assured  of 

13* 


150 


LETTER  OF  THE  ARCHBISHOP. 


his  learning  and  piety,  have  consecrated  to  the  office 
of  a  bishop  of  the  united  Church  of  England  and 
Ireland,  according  to  the  ordinances  of  our  holy  and 
Apostolic  Church,  and  having  obtained  the  consent 
of  our  Sovereign  Lady  the  Queen,  have  sent  out  to 
Jerusalem,  with  authority  to  exercise  spiritual  juris¬ 
diction  over  the  clergy  and  congregations  of  our 
church,  which  are  now,  or  which  hereafter  may  be, 
established  in  the  countries  above  mentioned.  And 
in  order  to  prevent  any  misunderstanding  in  regard 
to  this  our  purpose,  we  think  it  right  to  make  known 
to  you,  that  we  have  charged  the  said  bishop  our 
brother  not  to  intermeddle  in  any  way  with  the  ju¬ 
risdiction  of  the  prelates  or  other  ecclesiastical  dig¬ 
nitaries  bearing  rule  in  the  Churches  of  the  East, 
but  to  show  them  due  reverence  and  honor ;  and  to 
be  ready  on  all  occasions,  and  by  all  the  means  in 
his  power,  to  promote  a  mutual  interchange  of  re¬ 
spect,  courtesy,  and  kindness.  We  have  good  rea¬ 
son  to  believe  that  our  brother  is  willing,  and  will 
feel  himself  in  conscience  bound,  to  follow  these  our 
instructions  ;  and  we  beseech  you,  in  the  name  of 
our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  to  receive  him  as  a  brother, 
and  to  assist  him,  as  opportunity  may  offer,  with 
your  good  offices. 

“  We  trust  that  your  Holiness  will  accept  this 
communication  as  a  testimony  of  our  respect  and 
affection,  and  of  our  hearty  desire  to  renew  that 
amicable  intercourse  with  the  ancient  churches  of 


REFLECTIONS. 


151 


the  East,  which  has  been  suspended  for  ages,  and 
which,  if  restored,  may  have  the  effect,  with  the 
blessing  of  God,  of  putting  an  end  to  divisions  which 
have  brought  the  most  grievous  calamities  on  the 
Church  of  Christ. 

“  In  this  hope,  and  with  sentiments  of  the  highest 
respect  for  your  Holinesses,  we  have  affixed  our 
archiepiscopal  seal  to  this  letter,  written  with  our 
hand  at  our  palace  of  Lambeth,  on  the  twenty-third 
day  of  November,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord  one  thou¬ 
sand  eight  hundred  and  forty-one.” 

All  this  to  these  reverend  impostors, — to  these 
“  Holinesses,”  who  set  fire  to  a  few  ounces  of  alco¬ 
hol,  and  then  solemnly  thank  God  for  having  sent  a 
miraculous  flame  down  from  heaven  ! 

I  cannot  suppose  that  the  Archbishop  of  Canter¬ 
bury,  or  any  of  those  concerned,  were  fully  aware 
of  the  state  of  those  churches  whose  ministers  were 
thus  addressed ;  but  how  grievous  is  it  that  the  head 
of  the  mission  at  Jerusalem  should  have  been  intro¬ 
duced  under  such  auspices  ;  that  such  a  document 
should  have  been  published  and  promulgated  in 
Arabic,  that  Jews  and  Mohammedans  might  see  the 
“  amicable  intercourse  !”  I  am  well  aware  of  the 
obloquy  to  which  I  expose  myself  by  these  remarks  ; 
but  I  seek  not  to  please  men  ;  “  for  if  I  yet  pleased 
men,  I  should  not  be  the  servant  of  Christ.”  If  I 
sought  a  life  of  ease,  I  should  glide  along  with  the 
current  of  public  opinion,  and  “  prophesy  smooth 


152 


REFLECTIONS. 


things but  I  dare  not  speak  of  any  thing  other¬ 
wise  than  as  God  sees  I  think  of  it.  Nor  am  I  in¬ 
termeddling  with  that  which  is  no  concern  of  mine ; 
I  have  to  bear  the  shame  of  this  unholy  alliance 
among  my  unconverted  brethren,  who  are  but  ill-in¬ 
formed  in  regard  to  the  sectional  distinctions  o£  the 
Christian  Church,  and  therefore  naturally  hold  one 
Christian  answerable  for  the  views  and  opinions  of 
another.  It  is  true  I  could  tell  my  brethren  in  Je¬ 
rusalem,  that  the  church  to  which  the  mission  be¬ 
longs  is  very  different  indeed  from  the  Eastern 
churches  ;  but  what  avails  such  an  assertion  in  the 
face  of  a  public  document  that  gives  not  the  slightest 
hint  of  any  such  difference  ?  It  may  be  said  that 
the  lives  of  the  missionaries  will  show  their  Chris¬ 
tianity  to  be  different.  Most  willingly  do  I  admit 
this  ;  but  to  be  able  to  judge  of  their  walk  and  con¬ 
versation,  would  augur  a  degree  of  intercourse  from 
which  the  more  pious  Jews  will  shrink.  Any  diffe¬ 
rence  they  do  perceive,  they  do  not  lay  to  the  ac¬ 
count  of  their  Christianity,  but  to  their  belonging  to 
England. 

Let  it  not  be  said  that  in  these  remarks  I  am  ac¬ 
tuated  by  enmity  to  the  London  Jews’  Society. 
Whatever  faults  and  mistakes  it  may  have  commit¬ 
ted  it  has  been  the  instrument  of  much  good  to  the 
Jews,  and  by  its  distribution  of  Hebrew  New  Testa¬ 
ments,  has  in  many  quarters  stirred  up  a  spirit  of 
inquiry,  of  which  we  shall  hereafter  see  the  fruits. 


MISSION  AT  JERUSALEM. 


153 


As  little  am  I  actuated  by  any  enmity  to  the  Church 
of  England.  Why,  of  all  sections  of  the  Christian 
Church,  should  I  feel  enmity  at  the  only  one  that 
for  many  years  did  any  thing  for  the  welfare  of 
Israel  ?  I  speak  as  a  member  of  the  Church  of 
Christ,  to  my  fellow  members  of  the  Church  of 
Christ ;  urging  them  to  prayer  and  consideration,  as 
to  how  this  stumbling-block  is  to  be  removed  out  of 
the  way  of  my  brethren,  the  Jews.  Let  them  re¬ 
member  how  God  judged  Israel  of  old,  when  they 
had  any  alliance  with  the  idolatry  of  the  nations ; 
and  having  established  themselves  on  that  Zion 
which  the  Lord  loveth,  and  hath  chosen,  to  put  His 
name  there,  let  them  tremble  at  appearing  partakers 
of  other  men’s  sins,  lest  God  should  blow  upon  all 
their  efforts,  and  visit  them  with  His  sore  displeasure. 

I  am  forced,  very  much  against  my  inclination, 
thus  to  state  my  views  in  regard  to  the  mission  in 
Jerusalem.  Many  Christians,  who  are  its  friends 
and  well-wishers,  have  urged  me  to  do  so ;  and  had 
I  passed  it  over  in  silence,  my  motives  for  so  doing 
would  have  been  misconstrued.  The  great  and  im¬ 
portant  lesson  the  Jews  ought  to  be  taught,  is,  that 
Christianity  is  a  spiritual  religion  ;  an  internal  power, 
regulating  the  heart  and  conduct ;  and  that  all  out¬ 
ward  ordinances  and  arrangements,  though  useful 
as  instruments,  are  in  themselves  of  no  value,  apart 
from  this  internal  principle.  The  apostate  Eastern 
churches,  therefore,  consisting  only  of  outward 


154 


MISSION  AT  JERUSALEM. 


forms  (to  say  nothing  of  their  false  doctrine,)  ought 
at  once  to  have  been  disowned  ;  and  while  their 
Bishops  might  have  been  treated  with  courtesy  as 
men,  should  never  have  been  recognized  as  ministers 
of  Christ.  The  very  simplest  mode  of  worship, 
also,  of  which  the  Church  of  England  admits,  ought, 
according  to  this  view,  to  have  been  adopted,  to 
make  the  line  of  demarcation  between  it  and  the 
Eastern  churches  as  broad  as  possible.  A  bishop 
in  his  full  canonicals,  preceded  by  a  Janissary  with 
two  silver-headed  staves,  and  followed  by  three 
robed  priests,  do  not  form  the  best  arrangement  for 
convincing  the  Jews  of  the  simplicity  of  Christian 
worship.  In  this  I  am  not  at  all  speaking  as  a  Non¬ 
conformist.  A  large  body  of  attached  members  of 
the  Church  of  England  will  join  me  in  saying,  that 
there  is  a  wide  difference  between  its  services,  when 
conducted  in  the  simplest  manner  that  is  consistent 
with  order,  and  when  encumbered  with  as  many 
outward  trappings  as  its  Protestant  character  will 
admit  of. 

It  is  with  the  utmost  reluctance  I  make  these  re¬ 
marks.  Far  more  agreeable  is  it  to  me  to  testify, 
that  I  believe  my  dear  brother,  Bishop  Alexander,  to 
be  a  truly  Christian  man :  and  who  knows  what 
work  may  yet  be  allotted  to  him  in  the  providence 
of  God  ? 

The  first  Sunday  I  spent  in  Jerusalem  I  saw  four 
of  my  brethren  baptized  ;  two  of  them  residents  there, 


MISSION  AT  JERUSALEM. 


155 


and  two  who  had  been  sent  thither  to  be  baptized 
from  another  of  the  society’s  stations.  The  bishop 
gave  them  a  touching  and  excellent  address.  Most 
heartily  do  I  say,  “  The  Lord  add  unto  them  an 
hundred  fold,  and  may  his  eyes  see  it.”  And  above 
all,  may  those  he  baptizes  be  members  of  the  true 
church,  and  not  merely  swell  the  already  over¬ 
crowded  ranks  of  nominal  Christianity  ! 

It  is  certainly  a  remarkable  sign  of  the  times,  that 
a  Jew  should  be  sent  out  as  bishop  to  Jerusalem  by 
the  most  powerful  nation  of  the  earth.  Whatever 
its  spiritual  results  may  be,  it  is  quite  evident  it  is 
already  regarded  as  a  political  movement,  not  only 
by  the  Turks,  but  by  the  other  European  powers. 
Britain  had  a  consul  in  Jerusalem  for  three  years 
before  any  other  nation,  except  Prussia,  thought  of 
having  the  same ;  but  no  sooner  did  she  send  a 
bishop  than  France,  Russia,  and  Austria  sent  con¬ 
suls  forthwith  ,*  and  thus  in  Jerusalem — which  is,  in 
a  commercial  point  of  view,  but  a  paltry,  inland, 
eastern  town,  without  trade  or  importance  of  any 
kind, — sit  the  five  consuls  of  the  great  European 
powers,  looking  at  one  another,  it  is  difficult  to  say 
why  or  wherefore.  To  use  the  words  of  Dr.  Keith, 
in  his  interesting  work  recently  published :  “A  country 
which  for  previous  centuries  no  man  inquired  after , 
excites  anew  the  liveliest  interest  among  the  greatest 
of  earthly  potentates.”* 


*  The  Land  of  Israel,  p.  476. 


156 


LEPERS  IN  JERUSALEM. 


There  is  a  curious  fact  I  learned  in  Jerusalem, 
which  was  told  me  with  much  triumph  by  some  of 
my  brethren.  Within  the  last  few  years  there  have 
been  fourteen  converts  from  Christianity  to  Judaism. 
What  has  been  the  motive  of  this  strange  movement 
I  cannot  tell ;  but  it  will  easily  be  believed  the  Jews 
are  delighted  to  have  such  a  set-off  to  any  conver¬ 
sions  effected  among  them. 

But  I  must  linger  no  longer  in  Jerusalem.  One 
interesting  fact  I  will  mention,  and  then  take  my 
leave  of  it.  There  are  still  lepers  dwelling  in  Jeru¬ 
salem.  Near  the  Zion  gate  are  some  miserable 
hovels,  where  the  leprous  families  reside,  apart  from 
others,  associating  and  intermarrying  only  with  each 
other.  How  forcibly  does  this  recall  the  remem¬ 
brance  of  Him  who  spake  the  word,  and  the  leper 
was  cleansed  !  Though  Jerusalem  is  favored  more 
than  most  Eastern  cities,  in  having  two  excellent 
medical  men,  Dr.  Macgowan,  of  the  mission,  and 
Dr.  Frankel,  a  Jewish  physician,  sent  there  by  Sir 
Moses  Montefiore ;  yet  to  the  poor  leper  nothing 
avails  but  that  “  gift  of  healing”  which  subsists  in 
the  church  no  longer. 

No  traveller  can  visit  Jerusalem  without  being 
sensible  what  an  acquisition  to  it  the  worthy  British 
consul  is ;  whose  kind  attentions  and  friendly  aid 
are  always  at  the  service  even  of  those  who  have  no 
claim  on  them  beyond  that  of  being  strangers  in  a 


Rachel’s  tomb. 


157 


strange  land.  And  it  would  be  well  if  all  British 
residents  abroad  showed  the  same  example  of  high- 
toned  morality  that  Mr.  Young  exhibits. 

On  Monday,  May  21st,  M.  and  I,  in  company  with 
Dr.  Wilson,  of  Bombay,  and  Mr.  Graham,  Scottish 
Missionary  to  the  Jews,  set  off  for  Bethlehem.  On 
our  way  we  saw  the  aqueduct  that  conveyed  the 
water  from  Solomon’s  pools  to  Jerusalem.  The  next 
object  of  interest  was  Rachel’s  tomb.  The  present 
building  is  an  ordinary  Mohammedan  tomb ;  but 
there  is  every  reason  to  believe  that  it  occupies  the 
place  where  “  the  pillar  of  Rachel’s  grave”  once 
stood.  The  Jews  hold  it  in  high  veneration ;  and 
make  pilgrimages  to  pray  there.  The  Mohamme¬ 
dans,  who  also  venerate  it,  do  not  permit  the  Jews 
to  enter  within  it ;  even  Sir  Moses  Montefiore  when 
he  visited  it,  was  obliged  to  remain  outside.  There 
is  a  hole  in  the  wall  at  which  they  pray,  so  that  their 
voices  enter  into  the  tomb.  On  considering  the 
situation  of  this  tomb,  being  in  the  highway  between 
Bethlehem  and  Jerusalem,  we  can  at  once  understand 
both  the  poetic  allusion  of  the  prophet  Jeremiah,  to 
“  Rachel  weeping  for  her  children,”  and  the  appli¬ 
cation  of  it  by  Matthew  to  the  massacre  of  the  infants 
at  Bethlehem.  Even  to  this  day  may  Rachel  weep 
over  her  children,  “  scattered  and  peeled,”  “  meted 
out  and  trodden  down but  her  mourning  is  not 

always  to  continue :  “  There  is  hope  in  thine  end, 

14 


158 


BETHLEHEM. 


saith  the  Lord,  that  thy  children  shall  come  again  to 
their  own  border.”* 

Bethlehem  is  about  six  miles  from  Jerusalem,  and 
is  situated  on  the  slope  of  a  ridge.  The  valleys  and 
fields  around  it  are  tolerably  well  cultivated,  and  pro¬ 
duce  good  crops,  so  it  may  still  be  called  “  a  house 
of  bread.”  How  many  interesting  associations  are 
connected  with  this  spot!  Here  Naomi  and  Ruth 
dwelt  on  coming  from  Moab,*  some  of  these  fields 
were  once  the  possession  of  the  wealthy  Boaz.  A 
portion  of  his  inheritance  descended  to  his  grandson 
Jesse ;  here  David  was  born  ;  and  here,  when  the 
fulness  of  time  was  come,  the  Son  and  Lord  of  David, 
the  true  “  Ruler  of  Israel,”  was  born  ; — the  Lord  of 
glory  came  into  the  world  He  had  made,  a  helpless 
infant !  Mysterious  truth !  Can  we  wonder  that 
many  should  disbelieve  it?  The  real  wonder  is, 
that  many  who  profess  to  believe  it,  are  so  indiffer¬ 
ent  about  it.  The  more  we  contemplate  this  won¬ 
derful  event,  the  more  do  we  feel  that  “  no  man  can 
say  that  Jesus  is  the  Lord  but  by  the  Holy  Ghost. ”f 

What  a  momentous  night  was  that,  when  Christ, 
“  the  true  bread,”  came  down  from  heaven  !  I  looked 
with  the  deepest  interest  on  the  fields  round  Bethle¬ 
hem,  and  at  a  little  distance  from  it,  in  some  of  which 
the  shepherds  were  feeding  their  flocks  when  the 
angel  announced  the  “  glad  tidings,”  that  a  Saviour 


*  Jeremiah  xxxi.  17. 


j-  1  Cor.  xii.  3. 


REFLECTIONS. 


159 


was  born.  The  inhabitants  of  Bethlehem  are  at 
present  all  nominally  Christian ;  yet  what  do  they 
know  of  Christ?  They  know  no  more  of  Him  as 
a  Saviour  from  sin,  as  a  restorer  of  the  lost  image 
of  God  in  the  soul  of  man,  than  the  Mohammedans 
around  them. 

In  the  church  of  the  convent  at  Bethlehem  is 
shown  the  cave  of  the  nativity,  as  it  is  called.  It  is 
certainly  possible  that  this  cave  may  have  been  a 
place  for  cattle,  belonging  to  an  ancient  Khan  or 
inn ;  but  it  is  equally  probable  that  it  was  fixed 
upon,  in  the  days  of  Helena,  as  the  most  convenient 
spot  to  which  they  could  attach  the  tradition,  without 
any  sufficient  warrant  for  doing  so.  As  the  sepul¬ 
chre  of  Moses  was  hidden  from  the  Israelites,  so  it 
may  be  better  for  us  that  an  air  of  uncertainty  hangs 
over  the  precise  spots  connected  both  with  the  birth 
and  the  death  of  Christ ;  that  we  may  be  kept  from 
the  worship  of  the  visible,  and  from  attaching  pecu¬ 
liar  sanctity  to  any  thing  material,  which  has  a 
necessary  tendency  to  weaken  our  faith  in  the 
universal  spiritual  presence  of  Christ  with  His 
members. 

In  the  birth  of  Jesus  at  Bethlehem,  we  see  one  of 
those  unintentional  coincidences  that  so  strikingly 
mark  the  fulfilment  of  prophecy.  Micah  had  said, 
by  the  Spirit,  more  than  seven  centuries  before : 
“  But  thou,  Bethlehem-Ephratah,  though  thou  be 
little  among  the  thousands  of  Judah,  yet  out  of  thee 


160 


MAE  SABA. 


shall  he  come  forth  unto  me  who  is  to  be  ruler  in 
Israel ;  whose  goings  forth  have  been  from  of  old, 
from  everlasting.”*  Whether  Mary  and  Joseph 
were  acquainted  with  this  prophecy,  or  whether  the 
knowledge  of  it  was  confined  to  the  “  chief  priests 
and  scribes,”  we  cannot  tell ;  however  this  might  be, 
Mary  remained  quietly  in  Nazareth,  not  taking  the 
fulfilment  into  her  own  hands,  by  a  timely  removal 
to  Bethlehem.  A  heathen  emperor  must  issue  a 
decree  just  at  the  set  time,  and  thus  bring  the  mother 
of  Jesus  to  the  place  appointed  for  His  birth.  Do 
we  not  recognise  in  this  the  hand  of  Him  who  “  seeth 
the  end  from  the  beginning  ?” 

St.  Jerome  lived  in  the  convent  at  Bethlehem 
when  he  translated  the  Scriptures  into  Latin  ;  a  cave 
is  shown  as  the  apartment  he  occupied  when  so 
engaged.  Of  the  absurdities  shown  by  the  monks,  I 
shall  say  nothing  further,  than  that,  as  everybody 
must  be  accommodated  with  some  memorial,  Joseph 
must  needs  have  an  apartment  as  well  as  others  ;  but 
all  they  have  been  able  to  spare  for  him  is  a  mere 
niche,  or  hole  in  the  wall,  into  which  he  must  have 
had  some  difficulty  in  squeezing  himself. 

From  Bethlehem  we  proceeded  to  the  convent  of 
Mar  Saba,  where  M.  and  I  were  to  remain  for  the 
night,  as  we  intended  to  proceed  next  morning  to 
the  Dead  Sea.  After  about  an  hour’s  ride,  the 


*  Micah  v.  2. 


BROOK.  KEDRON. 


161 


country  became  very  wild  and  desolate,  being  the 
commencement  of  the  Wilderness  of  Judea,  a  large 
tract  of  desert  country  that  stretches  along  all  the 
west  side  of  the  Dead  Sea.  The  convent  of  Mar 
Saba  is  an  extraordinary  place.  It  was  founded  by 
the  person  whose  name  it  bears  at  the  end  of  the 
fifth  century,  and  has  ever  since  been  inhabited  by  a 
succession  of  monks  of  the  Greek  church.  The 
brook  Kedron,  which  rises,  or,  I  ought  to  say,  which 
did  rise,  to  the  north  of  Jerusalem,  here  has  flowed 
through  a  deep  ravine,  the  sides  of  which  are  preci¬ 
pitous,  and  the  convent  is  built  up  one  side  of  the 
ravine ;  the  foundation  being  nearly  on  the  level  of 
the  torrent  bed,  while  the  entrance  is  from  the  high 
ground  above.  The  bed  of  the  brook  Kedron,  like 
that  of  nearly  all  the  ancient  rivers  of  Palestine,  is 
quite  dry,  merely  serving  the  purpose  of  draining 
off  the  heavy  rains  of  winter.  Dr.  Wilson  called 
our  attention  to  this  dry  channel,  stretching  uninter¬ 
ruptedly  to  the  Dead  Sea,  as  being  ready  prepared 
for  the  “  living  water”  mentioned  in  Ezek.  xlvii. 
The  same  stream  is  also  alluded  to  in  Zech.  xiv.  8 ; 
the  “  former  sea”  in  that  verse  remaining  the  eastern 
or  Dead  Sea.  We  could  fully  understand  the  allu¬ 
sion  in  that  verse :  “  In  summer  and  in  winter  shall 
it  be:”  a  constantly  flowing  stream,  not  as  now,  the 
mere  rush  of  a  winter’s  torrent. 

We  parted  with  regret  from  Dr.  Wilson  and  Mr. 
Graham,  who  returned  to  Jerusalem.  We  were 

14* 


162 


WILDERNESS  OF  JUDEA. 


joined  by  our  former  fellow-travellers,  who  were  to 
accompany  us  to  the  Dead  Sea,  and  our  formidable 
looking  guard,  consisting  of  a  Sheik  or  chief,  and 
fifteen  Arabs.  It  is  impossible  to  take  such  a  jour¬ 
ney  without  a  guard  ;  and  as  to  the  number  of 
which  it  is  to  consist,  you  are  almost  entirely  at  the 
mercy  of  the  Sheik,  with  whom  you  must  make  the 
best  bargain  you  can. 

Dr.  Wilson  had  perceived  among  the  rocks  a 
small  animal,  which  he  thought  was  the  coney  of 
Scripture.  M.  promised  to  endeavor  to  get  one  for 
him,  which,  by  the  help  of  the  Bedouins,  he  suc¬ 
ceeded  in  doing.  We  climbed  up  to  see  its  nest, 
which  was  a  hole  in  the  rock,  comfortably  lined 
with  moss  and  feathers,  answering  to  the  description 
given  of  the  coney  in  Psa.  civ.  18,  and  Prov.  xxx.  26. 

At  five  o’clock  next  morning  we  left  Mar  Saba 
for  the  Dead  Sea.  The  farther  we  penetrated  into 
this  wilderness,  the  more  sterile  and  desolate  it  be¬ 
came  ;  it  can  only  be  described  by  the  Scripture 
phrases,  “  a  terrible  wilderness,”  a  “  waste  and 
howling  wilderness.”  The  narrow  track  we  pursued 
sometimes  followed  the  undulations  of  the  rocky 
heights,  and  sometimes  we  were  hid  in  mountain 
passes  between  them.  It  was  in  this  “  dry  and 
thirsty  land,  where  no  water  is,”  that  David  gave 
utterance  to  the  sixty-third  Psalm.  This  same 
desert  tract  of  country  seems  to  have  taken  different 
names,  according  to  the  towns  on  which  it  bordered  ; 


JOHN  THE  BAPTIST. 


163 


as  the  wilderness  of  Ziph,  the  wilderness  of  Tekoa  ; 
and  it  was  through  various  parts  of  it  that  David 
wandered  when  he  fled  from  Saul.  A  large  natural 
cavern,  considerably  to  the  south  of  where  we  now 
were,  is  shown  as  the  cave  of  Adullam. 

But  the  subject  that  was  uppermost  in  my  mind 
during  the  ride  in  this  awful  wilderness,  was,  the 
character  and  preaching  of  John  the  Baptist.  “  In 
these  days  came  John  the  Baptist  preaching  in  the 
wilderness  of  Judea  :  and  the  same  John  had  his 
raiment  of  camel’s  hair,  and  a  leathern  girdle  about 
his  loins ;  and  his  meat  wras  locusts  and  wild 
honey.”*  Why  does  the  Holy  Spirit  tell  us  the 
dress  and  the  food  of  John  ?  Because  John  was, 
like  his  father  Zacharias,  a  priest  “  of  the  course  of 
Abia”  or  Abijah ;  he  had  a  right  to  wear  the  priestly 
robe,  to  be  girded  with  the  ephod,  and  to  feed  on  the 
meat  of  the  sacrifices.  Why  did  he  not  reside  in 
Jerusalem  ?  Why  did  he  not  “  execute  the  priest’s 
office  in  the  order  of  his  course, — to  burn  incense 
when  he  went  into  the  temple  of  the  Lord  ?”  Be¬ 
cause  he  was  appointed  to  be  the  forerunner  of  a 
new  dispensation,  in  which  the  ceremonial  priesthood 
of  the  few,  was  to  give  place  to  the  spiritual  priest¬ 
hood  of  the  whole  body  of  believers.  He  therefore 
refused  his  priestly  garments,  and  put  on  the  ordi¬ 
nary  dress  of  the  wandering  Ishmaelite  of  the  desert; 


*  Matt.  iii.  1,  4. 


164 


JOHN  THE  BAPTIST. 


that  he  might  testify  to  the  Priests  and  Levites,  that 
“  the  voice  of  one  that  crieth”  must  now  be  listened 
to  because  it  is  truth,  and  not  because  it  is  announ¬ 
ced  by  a  man  wearing  a  certain  garment.  He  lived 
in  the  wilderness,  thereby  to  declare  that  every 
place  was  his  Bethel  ;  and  to  show  to  those  who  laid 
so  much  stress  on  the  locality  of  the  Temple,  that 
the  dispensation  was  at  hand,  under  which,  as  had 
been  predicted  by  the  prophets,  “  in  every  place  in¬ 
cense  shall  be  offered”  unto  the  name  of  the  Lord. 
And  while  “  they  which  minister  about  holy  things, 
live  of  the  things  of  the  temple,  and  they  which  wait 
at  the  altar,  are  partakers  with  the  altar,”  John 
lived  on  the  common  food  of  the  desert ;  his  altar 
was  everywhere  ,*  and  perhaps  on  some  of  the  very 
rocks  on  which  my  eye  rested,  he  offered  up  “  spirit¬ 
ual  sacrifices,  acceptable  to  God.” 

What  a  strange  eccentric  being  must  John  have 
appeared  to  the  priests  and  the  Pharisees  of  his  day  ! 
His  nonconformity  must  indeed  have  scandalized 
them.  Had  he  been  disposed  to  listen  to  them,  we 
can  imagine  how  much  sage  advice  they  would  have 
given  him,  about  remaining  in  his  calling ;  how 
many  pleas  of  additional  usefulness,  and  more  ex¬ 
tensive  influence,  they  might  have  urged,  to  induce 
him  to  abandon  his  divisive  courses  !  But  John 
knew  that  priesthood  had  decayed,  and  “  waxed 
old,”  and  was  “  ready  to  vanish  away  ;”  and  that  a 
dispensation  was  about  to  commence,  that  was  not 


THE  DEAD  SEA. 


165 


a  counterpart,  but  a  contrast  to  the  former ;  a  con¬ 
trast  in  so  far,  that  all  that  was  ceremonial  and 
material  in  the  one,  was  to  be  succeeded  by  that 
which  is  spiritual  and  real  in  the  other. 

About  half-past  ten  o’clock  we  reached  the  Dead 
Sea.  No  one  can  look  on  this  remarkable  spot 
without  feeling  that  the  curse  rests  upon  it.  It  is  a 
salt  lake  or  inland  sea,  about  fifty  miles  in  length, 
and  generally  from  ten  to  twelve  miles  broad.  The 
Arabs  call  it  “  the  Sea  of  Lot.”  “  The  phenomena 
around  the  Dead  Sea  are  such  as  might  naturally  be 
expected  from  the  character  of  its  waters  and  the 
region  round  about, — a  naked,  solitary  desert.  It 
lies  in  its  deep  cauldron,  surrounded  by  lofty  cliffs 
of  naked  limestone  rock,  and  exposed  for  seven  or 
eight  months  in  each  year  to  the  unclouded  beams 
of  a  burning  sun.  Nothing,  therefore,  but  sterility 
and  death-like  solitude  can  be  looked  for  upon  its 
shores.”*  The  water  is  intensely  salt,  with  a  bitter, 
disagreeable  taste.  Thick  incrustations  of  salt  are 
deposited  on  some  parts  of  its  banks,  wrhich  the 
Arabs  gather  for  the  use  of  their  families  and  flocks. 
The  river  Jordan  empties  itself  into  the  northern 
end  of  it. 

The  “  cities  of  the  plain”  are  supposed  to  have 
stood  at  the  southern  end  of  this  lake  ;  where  there 
is  a  hilly  ridge  that  is  called  by  the  Arabs  at  this 


*  Robinson’s  Bib.  Researches,  ii.  219. 


166 


THE  DEAD  SEA. 


day  “  the  stone  of  Sodom,”  and  which  they  say  is 
44  composed  wholly  of  rock  salt,  too  bitter  to  be  fit 
for  cooking,  and  only  used  sometimes  as  a  medicine 
for  sheep.”*  It  is  impossible  to  look  without  awe 
on  this  monument  of  the  44  severity  of  God,”  espe¬ 
cially  in  recollecting  that  the  inspired  apostles,  Peter 
and  Jude,  both  refer  to  it,  with  a  voice  of  warning, 
when  speaking  of 44  false  teachers,  who  privily  shall 
bring  in  damnable  heresies”  into  the  Church  of 
Christ. 

We  bathed  in  the  Dead  Sea,  and  found  its  water 
extremely  buoyant,  though  perhaps  not  quite  in  the 
degree  we  had  expected.  In  the  autumn,  after  the 
long  drought  of  summer,  it  is  probably  much  more 
so  ,*  and  at  the  north  end,  where  we  bathed,  it  may 
be  in  some  measure  affected  by  the  influx  of  the 
fresh  water  of  the  Jordan.  Dr.  Robinson,  the  most 
cautious  and  correct  of  travellers,  who  bathed  con¬ 
siderably  farther  south,  says  :  44  The  water  is  exceed¬ 
ingly  buoyant.  Two  of  us  bathed  in  the  sea,  and 
although  I  could  never  swim  before,  either  in  fresh 
or  salt  water,  yet  here  I  could  sit,  stand,  lie,  or  swim 
in  the  water  without  difficulty.”')* 

We  next  proceeded  over  a  sandy  plain,  and 
through  scenes  of  utter  desolation,  to  the  banks  of 
the  Jordan.  The  place  we  visited  is  said  to  have 


*  Robinson’s  Bib.  Researches,  ii.  206. 
f  Ibid.  ii.  213.  G 


GILGAL. 


167 


been  the  scene  of  our  Saviour’s  baptism  ;  and  not 
far  from  the  same  spot  the  passage  of  the  Israelites 
must  have  taken  place.  Here  there  are  a  few 
shrubs  and  small  trees  ;  and  after  so  much  desola¬ 
tion,  any  green  thing  is  welcome  to  the  eye ;  but  I 
could  not  help  calling  to  mind  the  poetical  allusions 
to  the  u  green  banks  of  Jordan,”  with  which  hymns 
abound  ;  and  thought  the  mere  shreds  and  patches 
of  vegetation  that  are  now  to  be  seen  on  them  pre¬ 
sent  a  very  different  picture  to  the  eye. 

It  is  at  this  place  that  the  Greek  pilgrims  conclude 
the  festivities  of  their  unhallowed  week  ;  men  and 
women,  in  a  state  of  nudity,  promiscuously  bathing 
in  the  stream.  The  current  is  here  so  rapid,  that 
it  is  dangerous  to  do  more  than  dip  in  at  the  very 
edge  of  the  water ;  those  who  venture  farther  are 
frequently  carried  down  the  stream  and  drowned. 

We  next  proceeded  towards  Jericho.  On  our 
way  we  must  have  passed  near  “  Gilgal,  in  the  east 
border  of  Jericho,”  where  Joshua  and  the  Israelites 
encamped  after  they  had  crossed  Jordan.  Here 
“  the  reproach  of  Egypt  was  rolled  away”  from 
them ;  and  here  they  kept  the  first  passover  in  the 
promised  land.  Their  last  act  before  leaving  Egypt 
to  set  out  on  their  pilgrimage  was  to  celebrate  this 
type  of  redeeming  love  ;  and  their  first  act  in  Canaan 
was  this  memorial  of  it.  They  crossed  the  Jordan 
on  the  tenth  day  of  the  first  month,  the  day  the 


168 


FOUNTAIN  OF  ELISHA. 


lamb  was  to  be  set  apart ;  and  kept  the  passover  at 
Gilgal  on  the  fourteenth  day  of  the  same  month. 

No  trace  of  Gilgal,  nor  of  the  ancient  Jericho,  re¬ 
mains.  Although  the  precise  site  of  Jericho  cannot 
be  fixed  upon,  there  is  no  doubt  that  it  was  in  the 
immediate  vicinity  of  the  place  that  still  bears  its 
name.  There  is  a  square  tower,  called  the  castle 
of  Jericho,  which  Robinson  supposes  to  be  as  recent 
as  the  twelfth  century ;  and  there  have  been  notices 
of  the  place  from  Scripture  times  until  now.  A  fdthy 
Arab  village  is  now  the  only  representative  of  the 
once  famous  Jericho.  There  is  some  cultivation  in 
the  plain  of  Jericho,  by  means  of  irrigation. 

We  pitched  our  tent  for  the  night  under  the  shade 
of  some  trees,  close  by  the  stream  which  flows  from 
the  Fountain  of  Elisha.  This  was  an  interesting 
spot,  as  there  is  no  reason  to  doubt  that  the  fountain 
is  the  very  same  on  which  Elisha  performed  the 
miracle  of  healing  its  waters.*  Even  the  cautious 
Robinson  says:  “It  is  the  only  one  near  Jericho, 
and  there  is  every  reason  to  regard  it  as  the  scene  of 
ElishaVmiracle.”f  The  water  was  once  “  naught,” 
and  the  ground  in  consequence  of  this  “  barren.” 
Elisha  cast  a  cruse  of  salt  in  it,  “  and  said,  Thus 
saith  the  Lord,  I  have  healed  these  waters ;  there 
shall  not  be  from  thence  any  more  dearth  or  barren 


*  2  Kings  ii.  19 — 22.  f  Robinson’s  Bib.  Res.  ii.  283. 


ROBBERS. 


169 


land.”  The  word  of  the  Lord  standeth  sure;  the 
water  is  now  sweet  and  pleasant ;  and  it  is  the  water 
of  this  fountain  that  irrigates  the  neighboring  crops. 
When  beholding  the  standing  evidence  of  this  mi¬ 
racle,  I  could  not  help  thinking  of  the  nauseous  wa¬ 
ters  of  the  Dead  Sea ;  and  asking  why  we  should 
not  take  the  prophecy  literally,  that  relates  to  its 
healing.  When  Ezekiel  saw  the  vision  of  the  wa¬ 
ters  that  flowed  from  the  sanctuary,  his  heavenly 
guide  said  to  him  :  “  These  waters  issue  out  toward 
the  east  country,  and  go  down  into  the  desert,  (‘the 
desert  or  plain  of  Judah,’)  and  go  into  the  sea ; 
which  being  brought  forth  into  the  sea,  the  waters 
shall  be  healed.”*  Then  may  the  “  desert  rejoice, 
and  blossom  as  the  rose for  “  every  thing  shall 
live  whither  the  river  cometh. ”f 

The  road  from  Jericho  to  Jerusalem  is  one  of  the 
wildest  and  most  dangerous  in  Palestine,  and  is  still 
the  favorite  haunt  of  robbers  ;  so  that  a  man  cannot 
even  now  go  “  from  Jerusalem  to  Jericho”  without 
the  risk  of  falling  “  among  thieves  ;”  while  the 
“  good  Samaritans,”  alas  !  are  there  no  longer.  It 
is  chiefly  on  account  of  this  part  of  the  journey  that 
so  large  an  escort  is  necessary.  Shortly  before  we 
came,  a  gentleman  travelling  this  road  happened  to 
linger  behind  the  rest  of  his  party,  when  he  was  im- 


*  Ezek.  xlvii.  8.  \  Ezek.  xlvii.  9. 

15 


170 


JAFFA. 


mediately  surrounded  by  robbers,  who  literally 
“  stripped  him  of  his  raiment,  and  wounded  him, 
and  departed.” 

On  Tuesday,  the  30th  of  May,  we  bade  adieu  to 
Jerusalem,  and  set  out  for  Jaffa,  the  ancient  Joppa. 
About  an  hour  after  we  left  Jerusalem  we  were 
much  struck  with  the  beautiful  verdure  of  the  trees 
in  the  orchards  near  which  we  passed  ;  a  sight  so 
rare  in  “  this  land  of  drought”  and  barrenness. 
Such  spots  vividly  call  to  mind  what  Palestine  was, 
and  what  it  will  yet  be.  There  is  no  object  of  inte¬ 
rest  on  this  road  ;  Ramleh,  the  only  town  we  passed 
through,  is  traditionally  said  to  be  the  ancient  Ari- 
mathea ;  but  there  are  strong  reasons  for  believing 
this  cannot  be  the  case. 

Jaffa  is  a  small  seaport  town,  entirely  devoid  of 
interest  in  itself,  but  fraught  with  interesting  recol¬ 
lections  to  the  Christian.  Here  dwelt  the  benevolent 
Dorcas,  whom  Peter  raised  to  life,  and  restored  to 
her  weeping  friends.  But  the  most  interesting  event 
connected  with  it  is,  that  here  was  first  revealed 
“the  mystery, — which  in  other  ages  was  not  made 
known  unto  the  sons  of  men, — that  the  Gentiles 
should  be  fellow-heirs,  and  of  the  same  body,  and 
partakers  of  his  promise  in  Christ  by  the  Gospel.”* 
Hitherto  there  had  been  no  entrance  into  the  Church 


*  Eph.  iii.  5,  6. 


CORNELIUS. 


171 


of  God  but  by  the  gate  of  Judaism ;  but  here  God 
showed  unto  Peter  that  the  middle  wall  of  partition 
was  broken  down,  and  that  Jew  and  Gentile  alike 
entered  into  life  through  faith  in  Christ.  Peter’s 
monitory  dream  prepared  him  to  go  with  the  mes¬ 
sengers  of  Cornelius,  nothing  doubting.  Caesarea, 
which  we  passed  on  the  following  day,  is  a  small 
town  on  the  coast,  about  thirty  miles  from  Jaffa. 
Here  lived  the  devout  Cornelius,  who  was  probably 
a  proselyte  of  the  gate  ;  one  who  believed  the  reve¬ 
lation  of  God  contained  in  the  Jewish  Scriptures, 
but  who  had  not  joined  himself  to  the  Jewish  church. 
This  man,  from  his  acquaintance  with  the  Jews,  (he 
“  was  of  good  report  among  all  the  nation  of  the 
Jews,”)  must  have  heard  something  of  the  reputed 
Messiah,  and  of  the  wonderful  things  that  had  hap¬ 
pened  among  the  Jews  during  the  ten  preceding 
years  ;  and  it  is  possible  his  mind  may  have  been 
exercised  on  these  matters  ;  and  the  prayers  that 
came  up  “  for  a  memorial  before  God,”  may  have 
been  prayers  for  light  and  guidance  on  the  subject. 
His  knowledge  of  what  had  transpired  was  probably 
very  dark  and  confused  ;  as  those  times  did  not  pos¬ 
sess  the  facilities  for  knowledge  to  run  to  and  fro, 
that  modern  ages  afford.  God  answered  his  prayers, 
not  by  immediate  illumination  of  his  own  mind,  but 
by  sending  a  fellow-man  to  preach  the  glad  tidings 
to  him.  And  what  did  Peter  tell  him?  That  there 
was  an  apostolic  church,  in  connection  with  which 


172 


CORNELIUS. 


there  was  safety,  and  out  of  which  there  was  no 
hope  of  any  thing  but  certain  “  uncovenanted  mer¬ 
cies?”  That  in  the  mysterious  rite  of  water  bap¬ 
tism,  he  should  be  regenerated,  and  made  a  member 
of  this  Church  ?  He  said  not  one  word  of  all  this. 
He  simply  narrated  the  life  and  death  of  our  blessed 
Lord  and  Saviour,  and  then  added  :  “  Through  His 
name  whosoever  believeth  in  Him  shall  receive  re¬ 
mission  of  sins.”*  And,  as  if  to  show  that  the  out¬ 
ward  rite  is  but  the  sign,  not  the  instrument  of  the 
Spirit’s  gift,  “  while  Peter  yet  spake  these  words, 
the  Holy  Ghost  fell  on  all  them  which  heard  the 
word.”t 

Here  was  the  true  Epiphany — the  manifestation 
to  the  Gentiles.  Here  was  the  “middle  wall  of  par¬ 
tition  broken  down,”  the  abolition  of  “  the  law  of 
commandments  contained  in  ordinances,”  that  Jew 
and  Gentile  might  be  “  builded  together  for  an  habi¬ 
tation  of  God  through  the  Spirit.”^:  And  Peter,  who 
had  heretofore  thought  it  an  unlawful  thing  for  a 
“man  that  is  a  Jew  to  keep  company,  or  come  unto 
one  of  another  nation,”  tarried  some  time  with  Cor¬ 
nelius  and  his  Gentile  friends. 

My  dear  brethren  of  the  Gentiles,  a  Peter,  a  Paul, 
and  a  Timothy,  a  Silas,  a  Barnabas,  and  a  Philip, 
were  willing  to  spend  and  be  spent  to  preach  the 


*  Acts  x.  43.  t  Ibid.  ver.  44.  4  Eph.  ii.  14,  1 5,  22. 


JAFFA. 


173 


Gospel  to  the  Gentiles ;  they  hesitated  not  to  expose 
themselves  to  persecution  and  privation, — to  “  perils 
by  the  heathen,  to  perils  in  the  city,  to  perils  in  the 
wilderness,  to  perils  in  the  sea they  were  “  in 
weariness  and  painfulness,  in  watchings  often,  in 
hunger  and  thirst,  in  fastings  often,  in  cold  and 
nakedness.”*  Israel  is  now  in  unbelief,  and  ye  de¬ 
sire  that  “  through  your  mercy”  some  of  them,  at 
least,  “  may  obtain  mercy.”  O,  then,  remember, 
that  for  this  end  something  more  is  needed  than  an 
annual  guinea  subscription. 

Our  design  was  to  sail  from  Jaffa  to  Beyrout. 
For  this  purpose  nothing  was  to  be  had  but  an  open 
boat  manned  by  Arab  sailors.  To  add  to  our  dis¬ 
comfort,  the  Italian  servant  who  had  hitherto  accom¬ 
panied  us,  refused  to  embark  with  us,  being  afraid 
of  sea-sickness.  He,  however,  brought  to  us  the 
master  of  a  boat,  who  professed  to  speak  Italian, 
and  with  him  a  legal  agreement  was  drawn  up  in 
due  form,  which  the  British  vice-consul  told  us  was 
quite  necessary.  There  was  nothing  in  Jaffa  to 
make  us  wish  to  remain  there  longer  than  necessary. 
While  at  dinner  I  perceived  with  dismay  the  light 
dress  I  wore  speedily  becoming  black  with  vermin  ; 
on  complaining  of  this  to  our  host,  he  coolly  told 
me  that  I  must  have  brought  them  from  the  house 
of  Simon  the  tanner,  four  empty  walls  we  had 
visited  in  the  morning. 


*  2  Cor.  xi.  26,  27. 
15* 


174 


MOUNT  CARMEL. 


In  the  evening  we  embarked  in  our  boat,  which 
was  as  filthy  and  uncomfortable  as  can  well  be  im¬ 
agined.  The  master’s  whole  stock  of  Italian  con¬ 
sisted  of  two  words,  Signore  and  buono  ;*  our  com¬ 
munication  with  him  was  consequently  of  a  very 
limited  nature.  The  bottom  of  the  boat  was  filled 
with  sand,  on  which  we  spread  our  mats  and  carpet 
bags,  and  rested  for  the  night  the  best  way  we 
could. 

Next  morning  we  landed  at  Khaifa,  or  Haifa,  a 
village  at  the  base  of  Mount  Carmel.  After  enjoy¬ 
ing  the  luxury  of  bathing,  we  procured  donkeys, 
and  ascended  to  the  top  of  Carmel.  This  is  a  ridge 
of  no  great  height,  running  obliquely  from  the  Medi¬ 
terranean,  in  a  southeast  direction,  for  nearly  eight 
miles,  its  highest  point  being  about  1200  feet  above 
the  level  of  the  sea,  close  to  which  it  rises.  What 
an  interesting  scene  of  Scripture  history  did  this 
mount  recal !  And  what  a  melancholy  reflection  to 
think,  that  after  all  that  God  has  revealed  to  man 
since  the  days  of  Elijah,  there  should  still  subsist 
idolatry  too  near  akin  to  that  of  the  worshippers  of 
Baal !  The  cry,  “  0  Mary,  hear  us,” — “  O  Anna, 
hear  us,”  is  as  vain  as  the  cry  of  “  O  Baal,  hear 
us  and  the  penances  of  Rome  are  dictated  by  the 
same  spirit  that  led  Baal’s  prophets  to  “  cut  them¬ 
selves  after  their  manner  with  knives  and  lancets 
till  the  blood  gushed  out.”f  Here  was  the  scene  of 


*  Sir  and  good. 


-f  1  Kings  xviii.  28. 


MOUNT  CARMEL. 


175 


the  early  Jewish  reformer’s  testimony  ;  ten  days 
before  I  had  been  in  the  scene  of  the  later  Jewish 
reformer’s  testimony,  of  him  who  came  “  in  the 
spirit  and  power  of  Elias.”  And  what  now  meets 
the  traveller’s  eye  on  these  spots  ?  Two  convents, 
the  one  of  the  Greek,  the  other  of  the  Romish 
church.  Each  of  these  has  been  recently  repaired 
and  adorned  by  their  respective  partisans.  The 
Emperor  of  Russia  lately  gave  a  large  sum  of 
money  for  repairing  and  ornamenting  Mar  Saba ; 
and  the  convent  on  Mount  Carmel  has  recently  been 
entirely  and  substantially  rebuilt,  chiefly  through 
money  from  France,  and  now  looks  more  like  a 
fortress  than  the  abode  of  peaceable  monks.  How 
utterly  discouraging  to  the  Christian  would  be  the 
successive  disappointments  that  have  followed  every 
reformation,  were  it  not  for  the  “  sure  word  of  pro¬ 
phecy,”  in  which  God  “  hath  promised,  saying,  Yet 
once  more  I  shake  not  the  earth  only,  but  also 
heaven  :  And  this  word,  yet  once  more,  signifieth 
the  removing  of  those  things  that  are  shaken,  as  of 
things  that  are  made,  that  those  things  which  can¬ 
not  be  shaken  may  remain.”*  Glorious  day,  when 
falsehood,  and  error, #and  every  thing  that  opposeth 
itself  to  the  truth,  shall  become  “  like  the  chaff  of 
the  summer  threshing-floor !” 

After  leaving  Carmel  we  resumed  our  voyage. 
The  next  morning  we  passed  close  to  Tyre,  the 


*  Heb.  xii.  26,  27. 


176 


TYRE. - SIDON. 


once  mighty  city,  now  the  abode  of  a  few  fishermen, 
so  literally  has  the  word  of  the  Lord  been  fulfilled : 
“  I  will  make  thee  like  the  top  of  a  rock ;  thou  shalt 
be  a  place  to  spread  nets  upon.”*  We  also  passed 
Sidon,  where  Paul  was  permitted  to  land  when  on 
his  voyage  to  Rome  as  a  prisoner,  having  “  liberty 
to  go  unto  his  friends  to  refresh  himself.”f  Alas  ! 
it  would  be  little  refreshment  to  the  Christian’s 
spirit  to  visit  Sidon  now  !  “  The  town  stands  upon 

a  high  rising  ground,  which  projects  a  considerable 
way  into  the  sea.  It  is  enclosed  by  a  high  fortified 
wall  on  the  eastern  side,  and  two  mosques  tower 
over  the  other  buildings  of  the  town.”:j: 

After  two  tedious  nights  and  days  in  our  open 
boat,  we  at  length  landed  at  Beyrout,  and  were 
kindly  received  by  our  excellent  friends  there. 
Beyrout  is  a  bustling  town,  of  about  fifteen  thousand 
inhabitants,  and,  contrasted  with  the  stillness  and 
desolation  of  Palestine,  gives  one  at  first  the  idea  of 
a  return  to  civilized  life ;  but  this  delusion  is  of 
short  duration ;  it  is  but  a  dirty  Turkish  town, 
although  two-thirds  of  the  inhabitants  are  nominally 
Christians. 

Some  of  my  dear  friends  in  England  having,  as 
well  as  myself,  taken  a  deep  interest  in  the  cause 
of  education  in  Syria,  I  made  it  my  business  to  ob- 


*  Ezek.  xxvi.  14.  j-  Acts  xxvii.  3. 

4  Narrative  of  a  Mission  of  Enquiry  to  the  Jews,  p.  340. 


AMERICAN  MISSIONARIES. 


177 


tain  all  the  information  I  could  on  the  subject,  both 
from  the  European  and  native  residents  there,  and 
by  personally  visiting  the  schools.  And  I  feel  it  an 
act  of  common  justice,  to  give  the  credit  of  any 
thing  that  is  done  there  in  the  way  of  education,  to 
those  to  whom  alone  it  is  due,  the  American  mis¬ 
sionaries.  These  excellent  men  have  labored  there 
for  about  twenty  years  ;  endeavoring,  by  the  estab¬ 
lishment  of  schools,  and  instructing  the  adult  natives 
as  they  have  opportunity,  to  improve  the  spiritual 
and  moral  condition  of  the  Arabs,  the  professors  of 
various  kinds  of  spurious  Christianity.  Their  efforts 
have  been  much  interrupted  by  the  unsettled  politi¬ 
cal  state  of  the  country ;  but  they  have  still  per¬ 
severed,  and  we  may  hope  that  in  due  season  they 
will  reap  more  abundant  fruit  than  they  have  yet 
been  enabled  to  do.  Through  their  instructions 
many  of  the  youths  in  Beyrout  are  well  acquainted 
with  English ;  most,  if  not  all,  the  Syrian  young 
men,  who  have  come  to  this  country  from  Beyrout 
during  the  last  few  years,  owe  their  education 
wholly  to  the  American  missionaries.  They  estab¬ 
lished  the  only  female  school  ever  attempted  at 
Beyrout,  to  which  Mrs.  Smith,  the  wife  of  one  of  the 
missionaries,  devoted  herself  with  an  assiduity  that 
injured  her  health,  and  led  to  her  premature  removal 
from  earthly  labor.  This  day-school  they  have 
been  obliged  to  discontinue,  since  the  establishment 
of  the  camp  of  Albanian  soldiers ;  but  there  are 


178 


GREEK  CHURCH  SCHOOLS. 


several  young  women  taken  under  the  roof  of  the 
different  missionaries,  who  are  carefully  instructed 
in  whatever  is  needful  to  render  them  useful  in  this 
world,  as  well  as  in  the  things  that  pertain  to  their 
eternal  welfare. 

The  missionaries  have  a  printing  press,  at  which 
they  print  portions  of  Scripture,  and  books  and 
tracts  on  evangelical  Christianity.  “  The  printing 
in  the  year  1841  amounted  to  636,000  pages, 
nearly  half  of  which  were  portions  of  the  sacred 
Scriptures.  The  books  and  tracts  distributed  ex¬ 
ceeded  nine  thousand,  and  nearly  eight  thousand  of 
these  have  been  distributed  in  Beyrout.”*  All  this 
activity  has  at  length  stirred  up  the  Greek  church 
to  jealousy  ;  and  they  have  got  rival  schools,  and  a 
rival  printing  press.  There  is  a  school  of  150 
boys,  under  the  superintendence  of  the  Greek  bi¬ 
shop  ;  and  another  small  school,  containing  about 
sixteen  younger  boys.  These  schools,  of  course, 
are  taught  by  members  of  the  Greek  church,  and 
the  children  attending  them  are  taught  prayers  to 
the  Virgin,  and  all  the  other  errors  of  that  apostate 
community.  In  addition  to  Arabic,  they  are  taught 
a  little  Italian,  but  no  English  is  taught.  Both 
these  schools  we  visited  ;  and  though  it  is  always 
pleasing  to  see  any  amount  of  real  knowledge  com- 

*  Thirty-third  Annual  Report  of  the  American  Board 
of  Commissioners  for  Foreign  Missions.  1842 


MISSIONS  IN  LEBANON. 


179 


municated,  and  the  mere  art  of  reading  is  an  invalu¬ 
able  acquisition,  we  could  not  but  feel  that  every 
child  sent  there,  who  might  otherwise  have  gone  to 
receive  the  truly  evangelical  instruction  of  the 
American  missionaries,  is  thereby  deprived  of  the 
opportunity  of  hearing  of  that  “  true  light,”  which 
alone  can  illumine  his  darkness.  Surely  it  is  folly 
to  talk  of  the  Greek  church  holding  all  the  essentials 
of  truth ;  what  does  it  signify,  practically,  what  a 
church  holds ,  if  it  does  not  teach  the  truth  ? 

The  printing  press  belonging  to  the  Greek  church, 
is  worked  by  some  of  the  young  men  whom  the 
American  missionaries  instructed  in  the  art  of 
printing.  These  faithful  servants  of  God  have 
much  to  suffer  from  the  ingratitude  of  those  to 
whose  welfare  they  devote  their  best  energies. 
Many  on  whom  they  have  bestowed  almost  paternal 
care  and  attention,  “  go  back,  and  walk  no  more 
with  them.” 

Their  services  in  Arabic  are  generally  attended 
by  about  forty  persons,  with  the  serious  and  devout 
appearance  of  many  of  whom  I  was  much  pleased. 
The  missionaries  do  not  begin  their  instructions  by 
attacking  the  errors  of  the  Greek  church  ;  they  set 
before  them  simply  the  pure  doctrines  of  the  gospel ; 
and  no  sooner  do  the  people  receive  these,  than  they 
feel  it  impossible  to  remain  any  longer  in  connection 
with  a  system  of  error. 

They  have  a  missionary  station  among  the 


180 


THE  DRUZES. 


Druzes  on  Mount  Lebanon  ;  and  there,  as  well  as 
in  Beyrout,  have  the  useful  appendage  of  a  pious 
physician  ;  or,  I  should  rather  say,  the  useful  ap¬ 
pendage  of  medical  skill ;  for  the  physicians  them¬ 
selves,  as  well  as  their  wives,  are,  in  every  sense  of 
the  word,  missionaries.  We  paid  an  interesting 
visit  to  this  station,  and  found  Mrs.  Van  Dyck,  the 
wife  of  the  physician,  engaged  in  the  instruction  of 
three  young  Druze  princesses,  as  they  are  called, 
the  daughters  of  some  of  the  Druze  chiefs.  There 
was  an  appearance  of  propriety  in  the  demeanor  of 
these  girls,  that  showed  the  good  effects  of  Mrs. 
Van  Dyck’s  influence.  I  must  again  repeat,  in  op¬ 
position  to  the  hasty  and  incorrect  statements  of 
some  travellers  who  have  not  taken  the  trouble  to 
examine  for  themselves,  that  there  is  not,  nor  ever 
was,  any  female  school  in  Beyrout  or  the  neighbor¬ 
hood,  except  the  one  already  alluded  to,  as  having 
been  established  by  the  American  missionaries ; 
that  there  is  nothing  whatsoever  doing  for  female 
education  except  by  them ;  and  that  there  is  no 
evangelical  or  protestant  religious  instruction  com¬ 
municated  to  the  native  population,  either  male  or 
female,  except  by  those  laborious  and  excellent  per¬ 
sons,  of  whom  some  recent  travellers  in  these  parts 
take  no  more  notice  in  their  printed  narratives  than 
if  they  did  not  exist. 

While  we  were  with  Mrs.  Van  Dyck,  some  of  the 
elder  Druze  princesses  came  in,  wearing  the  tantour 


'  DRUZE  PRINCE. 


181 


or  horn,  which  has  a  most  extraordinary  appearance. 
A  silver  horn,  about  two  feet  in  length,  is  firmly 
bound  round  the  head,  and  a  white  veil  thrown  over 
it ;  while  from  the  back  of  the  head  hangs  down  a 
bunch  of  tassels,  ornamented  with  silver,  which 
weighs  several  pounds. 

One  of  the  Druze  princes  or  Sheiks  invited  us  into 
his  house,  and  said,  in  a  tone  of  interest  and  anxiety  : 
“  When  will  England  come  and  take  possession  of 
us  ?  We  are  in  a  miserable  state  of  confusion  and 
strife ;  will  not  England  take  pity  upon  us  ?”  This 
rough  warrior,  accustomed  all  his  life  to  the  broils 
and  petty  warfare  of  half-savage  life,  seems  at  length 
to  possess  that  craving  for  guidance  which  a  recent 
writer  represents  as  the  feeling  of  the  uneducated 
masses  of  every  country  at  present :  “  He  would 
fain  (though  as  yet  he  knows  it  not)  find  for  himsel  f 
a  superior  that  should  wisely  and  lovingly  govern. 
It  is  for  a  manlike  place  and  relation  in  this  world, 
where  he  sees  himself  a  man,  that  he  struggles.  At 
bottom,  may  we  not  say  it  is  even  for  this :  That 
guidance  and  government,  which  he  cannot  give 
himself,  which  in  our  so  complex  world  he  can  no 
longer  do  without,  might  be  afforded  him.”*  The 
feeling  expressed  by  this  Druze  chief  is  very  general 
throughout  Palestine.  It  is  to  be  regretted  that  inter - 


*  Chartism.  By  T.  Carlyle,  p.  22. 
16 


182 


VISIT  TO  THE  PASHA. 


national  etiquette  prevents  England  from  complying 
with  a  desire  so  generally  felt. 

With  regard  to  the  project  of  some  benevolent 
persons  in  this  country,  of  benefiting  Syria  by  means 
of  a  native  agency,  I  will  take  the  liberty  of  saying, 
what  every  European  resident  in  Beyrout  will  con¬ 
firm,  that  in  the  present  state  of  the  country,  a  me¬ 
chanical  education  would  be  much  better  suited  for 
this  purpose  than  a  literary  one.  And  the  expecta¬ 
tion  of  doing  any  thing  whatsoever  through  the  co¬ 
operation  of  the  Greek  priests,  I  must  believe  to  be 
a  mere  chimera.  If  any  portion  of  the  Greek  church 
is  to  be  improved,  it  must  be  by  another  Luther 
coming  out  of  her,  and  testifying  against  her  ;  laying 
down  his  life,  if  need  be,  for  the  testimony  of  Jesus. 
And  I  would  really  dispel  an  illusion,  caused  by  the 
halo  which  the  word  bishop  throws  around  the  per¬ 
sonages  to  whom  it  is  applied.  In  this  country,  it  is 
true,  a  bishop  is  always  a  gentleman,  and  a  man  of 
education ;  but  in  Syria  a  bishop  is  generally  an 
ignorant  Greek,  almost  as  dirty  and  degraded  as  the 
Arab  population  around  him. 

Before  leaving  Beyrout,  we  paid  a  visit  to  the 
Pasha,  which  highly  amused  us.  He  was  seated  on 
his  divan,  with  his  feet  tucked  under  him,  in  the 
usual  Oriental  fashion ;  he  wore  a  loose  robe,  like  a 
dressing-gown,  and  a  high  red  cap  on  his  head.  The 
only  article  of  furniture  in  his  apartment  was  a  large 
English  arm-chair,  which  some  one  had  presented  to 


EDUCATION  IN  SYRIA. 


183 


him ;  but  this  was  evidently  more  for  ornament  than 
use.  Several  attendants  stood  at  the  lower  end  of  the 
room,  with  their  eyes  steadily  fixed  upon  him,  so 
that  with  the  slightest  movement  of  his  hand  he  could 
signify  his  wishes  to  them.  It  was  a  complete  illus¬ 
tration  of  the  text,  “As  the  eyes  of  servants  look 
unto  the  hands  of  their  masters.”* 

Coffee  and  pipes  having  been  brought  in,  the  Pasha 
began  to  inquire  relative  to  the  subject  that  seemed 
uppermost  in  his  mind  in  regprd  to  England, — the 
aerial  machine.  He  asked  all  manner  of  questions 
about  it.  and  seemed  to  labour  under  a  sort  of  dread 
that  the  English  would,  ere  long,  come  flying  through 
the  air,  and  take  possession  of  Syria.  We  men¬ 
tioned  to  him  the  Thames  Tunnel,  as  another  of  the 
wonderful  works  of  England :  but  this  did  not 
appear  to  impress  him  so  much ;  and,  by  way  of  a 
set-off  to  it,  he  asked  us  whether  we  had  ever  seen 
the  bridge  at  Constantinople ;  seeming  to  think  a 
road  over  the  water  quite  as  wonderful  as  a  road 
under  it. 

As  my  object  is  not  to  describe  persons,  but  things, 
I  have  not  adopted  the  prevalent  custom  of  travellers, 
that  of  mentioning  and  eulogizing  every  person  they 
happen  to  meet  with  ,*  but  I  cannot  take  leave  of 
Beyrout  without  acknowledging  the  kindness  of  Mr. 
Wildenbruch,  the  Prussian  Consul-General,  whom  I 


*  Psalm  cxxiii.  2. 


184 


EGYPT. 


met  as  a  stranger,  and  from  whom  I  parted  as  from 
an  old  friend. 

From  Beyrout  we  proceeded  in  a  small  sailing 
vessel  to  Alexandria,  where  we  only  remained  a  few 
days.  I  therefore  saw  very  little  of  the  country 
where  my  fathers  were  in  bondage ;  but  a  very  cur¬ 
sory  observation  enables  one  to  see  that  its  own  in¬ 
habitants  are  in  bondage  to  sin  and  Satan.  It  is 
indeed  the  land  “  where  death  and  darkness  reign 
but  they  shall  not  reign  there  always,  for  a  day  is 
coming  when  “  the  Lord  shall  be  known  to  Egypt, 
and  the  Egyptians  shall  know  the  Lord  in  that  day, 
whom  the  Lord  of  Hosts  shall  bless,  saying,  Blessed 
be  Egypt,  my  people.”* 

We  left  Alexandria  by  the  steamer  on  the  20th 
of  June,  and  on  the  11th  of  July,  after  five  months 
of  pleasant  association  together,  my  esteemed  fellow- 
traveller  and  myself  had  the  happiness  of  again  set¬ 
ting  foot  in  England,  his  native,  and  my  adopted 
country,  much  gratified  with  having  seen  so  many 
interesting  places,  and  thankful  for  the  gracious  pro¬ 
tection  we  had  enjoyed  in  all  our  wanderings. 

And  now,  having  been  permitted  to  behold  the  de¬ 
solation  of  my  father-land,  to  witness  its  moral  and 
physical  degradation,  what,  it  may  be  asked,  is  the 
impression  left  on  the  mind  ?  A  feeling  of  hope  and 
expectation,  that  as  the  night  is  so  dark,  the  dawn 


*  Isaiah  xix.  21,  25. 


CONCLUDING  REFLECTIONS. 


185 


must  be  near.  When  Isaiah  was  told  by  the  Lord 
of  the  grossness  of  heart,  the  heaviness  of  ear,  and 
the  blindness  of  eye,  that  should  come  upon  his 
people,  he  inquired  how  long  this  was  to  continue : 
“  Then  said  I,  Lord,  how  long?  And  He  answered, 
Until  the  cities  be  wasted  without  inhabitant,  and  the 
houses  without  man,  and  the  land  be  utterly  desolate, 
and  the  Lord  have  removed  men  far  away,  and  there 
be  a  great  forsaking  in  the  midst  of  the  land.”  All 
this  has  come  to  pass.  Shall  we  not,  then,  confi¬ 
dently  expect  the  speedy  fulfilment  of  the  Lord’s  gra¬ 
cious  promises  to  His  people  Israel  ?  “  Thus  saith 

the  Lord  God,  O  mountains  of  Israel,  ye  shall  shoot 
forth  your  branches,  and  yield  your  fruit  to  my  peo¬ 
ple  of  Israel,  for  they  are  at  hand  to  come.  For 
behold,  I  am  for  you,  and  I  will  turn  unto  you,  and 
ye  shall  be  tilled  and  sown  ;  and  I  will  multiply  men 
upon  you,  all  the  house  of  Israel,  even  all  of  it ;  and 
the  cities  shall  be  inhabited,  and  the  wastes  shall  be 
builded.  And  I  will  multiply  upon  you  man  and 
beast ;  and  they  shall  increase  and  bring  fruit ;  and 
I  will  settle  you  after  your  old  estates,  and  will  do 
better  unto  you  than  at  your  beginnings;  and  ye 
shall  know  that  I  am  the  Lord.”* 

But  the  restoration  of  Israel  is  connected  with  the 
close  of  the  Gentile  dispensation.  “  Jerusalem  shall 
be  trodden  down  of  the  Gentiles,  until  the  times  of 


*  Ezek.  xxxvi.  7 — 11. 
16* 


186 


CONCLUDING  REFLECTIONS. 


the  Gentiles  be  fulfilled.”*  Whatever  may  be  meant 
by  the  accomplishment  of  the  times  of  the  Gentiles, 
vve  may  venture  to  say  that  it  does  not  mean  a  time 
of  outward  ease,  and  worldly  prosperity,  such  as 
,  many  of  the  professing  churches  of  Christ  now  enjoy ; 
“  for  there  shall  be  great  tribulation,  such  as  was 
not  since  the  beginning  of  the  world  to  this  time,  no, 
nor  ever  shall  be.”f  In  this  highly  favored  land,  I 
never  can  look  on  the  luxury  of  the  rich,  contrasted 
with  the  miserable  destitution  of  the  poor,  without 
remembering  God’s  threatening  upon  “  them  that 
dwell  carelessly  in  the  isles.”:):  How  well  does  the 
description  of  the  state  of  those  that  were  “  at  ease 
in  Zion,”  previous  to  its  day  of  visitation,  apply  to 
many  of  the  higher  class  of  society  in  England  at 
this  day  !  “  Ye  that  put  far  away  the  evil  day,  that 

lie  upon  beds  of  ivory,  and  stretch  themselves  upon 
their  couches,  and  eat  the  lambs  out  of  the  flock, 
and  the  calves  out  of  the  midst  of  the  stall ;  that 
chant  to  the  sound  of  the  viol,  and  invent  to  them¬ 
selves  instruments  of  music  like  David  ;  that  drink 
wine  in  bowls,  and  anoint  themselves  with  the  chief 
ointments  ;  but  they  are  not  grieved  for  the  affliction 
of  Joseph. ”§  The  affliction  of  their  poor  brethren 
is  but  a  passing  thought  to  many  of  the  great  and 
affluent :  when  the  cry  of  the  poor  disturbs  their  re¬ 
pose,  they  start  up ;  throw  him  an  alms,  and  then 


*  Luke  xxi.  24. 

|  Ezek.  xxxix.  6. 


■f  Mat,  xxiv.  21. 

§  Amos  vi.  3 — 6, 


CONCLUDING  REFLECTIONS. 


187 


think  of  him  no  more.  This  is  not  that  wise  consi¬ 
deration  of  the  case  of  the  poor  to  which  God  has 
attached  a  blessing.  The  condition  of  the  laboring 
poor  is  viewed  through  the  medium  of  party  politics, 
instead  of  being  calmly  pondered  as  in  the  sight  of  a 
heart-searching  God.  O  that  the  great  and  noble 
of  the  land  would  regard  this  as  the  chief  work  they 
have  to  do  at  the  present  crisis ;  that  they  would 
direct  their  efforts  not  merely  to  alleviate  the  effects 
of  poverty,  but  to  discover  and  remove  the  cause ! 

“  Ye  have  heaped  treasure  together  for  the  last  days. 
Ye  have  lived  in  pleasure  on  the  earth,  and  been 
wanton.”*  Let  the  complaints  of  the  poor  and  needy 
arouse  you,  before  their  cries  enter  “  into  the  ears 
of  the  Lord  of  Sabaoth.”  “  It  may  be  a  lengthening  - 
of  thy  tranquillity.”  It  may  stay  impending  judg¬ 
ments,  like  the  timely  repentance  of  Nineveh.  “And 
God  saw  their  works,  that  they  turned  from  their 
evil  way ;  and  God  repented  of  the  evil  that  He  had 
said  that  He  would  do  unto  them,  and  He  did  it  not.”f 
He  whose  first  coming  was  in  poverty  and  affliction, 
will  come  again  in  power  and  glory,  when  he  shall 
“judge  the  poor  of  the  people;  he  shall  save  the 
children  of  the  needy,  and  shall  break  in  pieces  the 
oppressor.”;}: 

I  by  no  means  wish  to  encourage  in  the  poor  the 
erroneous  notion  that  the  rich  are  necessarily  hard¬ 
hearted,  and  indifferent  to  their  sufferings ;  or  to 
afford  them  an  excuse  for  the  indulgence  of  bitter 


*  1  James  v.4.  f  Jonah  iii.  10. 


4  Psalm  lxxii.  4. 


188 


CONCLUDING  REFLECTIONS. 


and  unkind  feelings  against  those  who  are  providen¬ 
tially  placed  in  a  station  superior  to  their  own.  Ine¬ 
quality  of  outward  circumstances  has  subsisted  in 
the  world  from  the  very  earliest  ages ;  and  no  con¬ 
trivance  of  man  can  ever  remove  this  inequality ; 
though,  doubtless,  many  of  its  evils  might  be  reme¬ 
died.  The  Christian  poor,  especially,  have  little 
cause  to  murmur  at  those  “  light  afflictions  which 
are  but  for  a  moment.”  Think,  dear  friends,  what 
an  eternal  weight  of  glory  is  before  you !  Shall 
we,  who  are  citizens  of  the  heavenly  Jerusalem,  fret 
ourselves  on  account  of  the  vanity  and  folly,  the 
heartlessness  and  oppression,  of  those  who  know  not 
God  1  Those  who  do  know  Him,  whether  rich  or 
poor,  will  never  oppress  or  neglect  their  fellow-crea¬ 
tures,  and  least  of  all,  their  brethren  in  Christ. 

Throughout  the  whole  of  Scripture,  God  repre¬ 
sents  Himself  as  the  friend  and  protector  of  the  poor. 
What  a  source  of  comfort  is  this  to  him  whose  heart 
feels  its  own  bitterness, — to  him  who  hath  “  no  help 
of  man  at  all !”  Let  the  poor  of  Christ’s  flock 
rejoice  in  the  many  assurances  of  their  Lord’s  special 
care  over  them ;  and  let  them  “  rejoice  in  hope  of 
the  glory  of  God “  looking  for  that  blessed  hope, 
even  the  glorious  appearing  of  the  great  God,  and 
our  Saviour,  Jesus  Christ,”*  when  “  they  shall  ob¬ 
tain  joy  and  gladness,  and  sorrow  and  sighing  shall 
flee  away.”f 


*  Titus  ii.  13. 


|  Isaiah  xxxv.  10 


THE  JEWS. 

\ 


Having  already  exceeded  my  limits,  I  must  con¬ 
dense  my  account  of  my  brethren  as  much  as  possible. 
A  lengthened  account  of  conversations  held  with 
them  would  neither  be  interesting  nor  useful ;  as  in 
speaking  on  the  same  subject,  to  the  same  class  of 
persons,  there  must  always  be  a  great  similarity 
both  in  the  objections  urged  and  the  arguments  em¬ 
ployed.  In  speaking  of  the  Jews  on  the  continent 
of  Europe,  therefore,  I  will  divide  them  into  three 
classes,  and  narrate  the  conversation  held  with  one 
of  each  class,  which  may  serve  as  a  fair  specimen 
of  the  whole. 

1.  The  Unlearned. 

1  began  to  converse  with  a  poor  Jewess  by  telling 
her  that  I  was  on  my  way  to  Jerusalem,  the  “  city 
of  our  solemnities,”  where  our  forefathers,  in  the 
days  of  their  glory,  met  to  worship  the  God  of  Israel. 
When  I  proceeded  from  this  to  something  of  a  more 

(189) 


190 


THE  JEWS. 


personal  nature,  she  said,  “  O  sir,  I  do  not  wish  to 
change  my  religion;  our  religion  is  the  oldest  and 
best ;  I  would  not  change  it  for  all  the  money  in  the 
world.”  I  then  tried  to  convince  the  poor  woman 
that  she  had  no  religion  at  all ;  no  knowledge  of  the 
God  whom  she  professed  to  worship ;  no  acquaint¬ 
ance  either  with  Moses  or  the  prophets.  She  said 
she  can  be  guided  by  those  who  are  learned  and 
pious ;  that  it  is  not  for  such  as  she  to  trouble  them¬ 
selves  with  matters  that  are  above  their  capacity.  In 
short,  she  showed  a  degree  of  dutiful  submission  to 
her  church  that  would  have  delighted  a  Tractarian 
beyond  measure.  I  see  not  what  he  could  have 
done  in  such  circumstances,  but  to  leave  her  in  quiet 
possession  of  her  errors.  Perhaps  he  would  urge, 
that  being  a  Jewess,  ignorant  of  Christianity,  she 
must  be  instructed  in  it.  Doubtless ;  but  in  what 
way  could  I  do  this  but  by  pressing  upon  her,  in  the 
strongest  manner,  her  personal  responsibility  to  God  ; 
the  necessity  of  examining  and  endeavoring  to  ascer¬ 
tain  what  God  has  revealed  to  man  for  his  salvation. 
The  first  step  to  be  taken  was  to  seek  to  overturn 
this  blindfold  submission  to  a  church ;  to  convince 
her  that  her  soul  was  in  danger,  and  that  she  must 
answer  at  the  judgment-seat  for  her  refusal  to  exa¬ 
mine  what  is  truth.  How  congenial  to  the  depraved 
human  heart  is  this  submission  to  authority  in  mat¬ 
ters  of  religion, — this  shifting  the  responsibility  from 
ourselves  to  any  spiritual  agent  whp  will  transact 


THE  JEWS. 


191 


the  business  for  us  !  The  mighty  influence  of  priest¬ 
craft  in  all  ages  ceases  to  astonish  us  when  we  reflect 
how  willing  men  are  universally  to  become  its  dupes. 
Ignorance  is  cherished,  as  affording  immunity  from 
the  trouble  of  investigation.  “  The  book  is  delivered 
to  him  that  is  not  learned,  saying,  Read  this,  I  pray 
thee;  and  he  saith,  I  am  not  learned.”* 

2.  The  Talmudical  Rabbi. 

This  class  and  the  last  are  two  extremes  that 
meet  in  one  common  point,  reverence  for  tradition. 
In  conversing  with  a  French  Talmudist,  I  was  sur¬ 
prised  at  his  using  a  line  of  argument  I  had  never 
heard  resorted  to  by  any  other  Rabbi.  He  seemed 
well  acquainted  with  Christian  writings  ;  and  as  some 
Christians  in  the  present  day  appeal  to  Jewish  cus¬ 
toms  in  support  of  their  views,  he  was  disposed  to 
avail  himself  in  a  similar  way  of  the  practice  of 
Christians.  In  defending  Jewish  opinions  and  ob¬ 
servances,  founded  merely  on  tradition,  he  said  that 
Christians  also  have  many  ceremonies  they  can  only 
support  by  tradition.  To  this  I  replied,  that  the  fact 
of  Christians  having  committed  the  same  error  as 
the  Jews,  does  not  make  it  less  an  error,  and  that 
the  supporters  of  tradition,  whether  Jews  or  Gentiles, 
are  committing  the  sin  of  adding  to  the  words  of  God, 


*  Isaiah  xxix.  12. 


192 


THE  JEWS. 


and  thereby  saying  that  His  authoritative  revelation 
of  His  will  to  man  is  not  sufficiently  plain  or  copious, 
but  must  be  helped  out  by  tradition ;  which,  instead 
of  bearing  upon  it  the  stamp  of  the  wisdom  of  God, 
in  most  cases  plainly  shows  itself  to  be  only  the 
foolish  vagaries  of  men.  He  then  pleaded  the  re¬ 
spect  due  to  the  Talmud,  on  account  of  its  antiquity, 
and  its  being  the  exponent  of  the  views  of  wise  and 
learned  men.  I  told  him  that  in  matters  of  religion 
I  could  receive  nothing  on  any  plea  but  that  of  its 
being  the  truth  of  God,  and  pointed  out  to  him  several 
instances  in  which  the  tradition  alters  and  annuls 
the  original  intent  of  the  command  of  God.  The 
Rabbi  then  charged  me  with  pride  in  setting  up  my 
own  wisdom  in  opposition  to  that  of  the  wise  ancients, 
and  presuming  to  judge  for  myself  what  is  truth.  I 
told  him  the  revelation  made  by  God  in  the  Holy 
Scriptures  is  addressed  to  every  individual ;  that  it  is 
meant  to  be  understood  by  men,  and  that  every  man 
is  bound  to  make  himself  acquainted  with  it.  All 
this  he  admitted.  I  said  he  ought  not,  then,  to  blame 
me  for  having  studied  the  word  of  God  with  the 
prayer  of  David, — “  Open  thou  mine  eyes,  that  I 
may  behold  wondrous  things  out  of  thy  law.”  I 
assured  him  that  whosoever  does  this  with  an  earn¬ 
est  desire  to  know  the  mind  of  God,  will  be*  guided 
by  Him  into  all  truth ;  but  that  if  we  only  read  the 
Scriptures  in  order  to  get  support  for  favorite  opi¬ 
nions,  and  preconceived  notions,  we  are  led  to  believe 


THE  JEWS. 


193 


a  lie,  and  to  cling  to  it.  I  then  read  to  him  from 
the  Bible  some  of  the  awful  warnings  given  to  the 
Israelites  by  Moses,  and  the  prophetic  denunciations 
uttered  against  them,  and  reminding  him  how  very 
literally  these  had  been  fulfilled,  urged  upon  him 
the  necessity  of  taking  Scripture  in  its  plain  and 
literal  meaning.  I  also  reminded  him  that  from 
ancient  times  the  teachers  of  Israel  had  been  those 
who  caused  them  to  err,  and  read  to  him  some  of  the 
solemn  denunciations  of  Isaiah  and  Jeremiah  against 
the  teachers  of  error.  I  then  appealed  to  him  as  a 
teacher  of  Israel  on  the  awful  responsibility  he  in¬ 
curred,  if,  as  I  fully  believed,  the  tendency  of  all  his 
instructions  was  to  keep  them  from  the  true  know¬ 
ledge  of  God.  On  this  he  began  to  cry  out  vehe¬ 
mently  that  I  should  not  persuade  him  to  be  a  Chris¬ 
tian  ;  that  Christians  were  more  wicked  than  Jews ; 
with  much  more  in  the  same  strain ;  when  I  inter¬ 
rupted  him  by  saying  that  we  had  not  yet  come  to 
this  advanced  stage  of  the  argument ;  that  I  wished 
first  to  prove  to  him  that  he  was  not  a  true  Israelite. 
The  rest  of  our  conversation  I  do  not  feel  it  needful 
to  narrate.  If  we  in  a  measure  succeed  in  removing 
Talmudical  objections  to  Christianity,  it  is  still  but 
gaining  access  into  the  outer  court  of  the  fortress  : 
the  stronghold  itself,  man’s  evil  heart  of  unbelief,  has 
yet  to  be  assailed  ;  and  its  power  of  resistance  to  the 
truth  is  very  much  the  same  in  all  men. 

17 


194 


THE  JEWS. 


3.  The  Freethinker. 

This  is  a  class  that  I  believe  is  on  the  increase 
among  the  Jews.  I  heard  from  a  Christian  friend, 
of  a  Jew,  who  had  an  office  in  the  Synagogue,  who 
he  thought  was  willing  to  listen  to  the  Gospel.  I  in¬ 
vited  him  to  my  hotel.  I  expressed  to  him  the  inte¬ 
rest  I  take  in  my  brethren,  and  my  anxiety  for  their 
welfare.  “What  do  you  call  their  welfare?”  he 
asked.  I  spoke  to  him  of  the  Scriptural  hope  of 
Israel,  of  a  Redeemer  who  was  to  “come  out  of  Zion, 
and  turn  away  ungodliness  from  Jacob.”  To  my 
surprise,  he  told  me  that  he  believed  all  that  had  been 
prophesied  of  in  the  Scriptures  had  been  fulfilled  in 
Christianity.  I  asked  if  he  then  believed  Jesus  to  be 
the  Messiah  of  the  Jew’s.  To  this  he  evaded  giving 
a  direct  answer;  but  seemed  to  regard  Him  in  the 
light  of  a  reformer  of  morals,  and  to  view  Christianity 
as  the  instrument  of  civilizing  the  human  race;  of 
which  civilization  all  may  enjoy  the  benefit,  what¬ 
ever  his  own  private  religious  opinions  are.  He  did 
not  believe  any  change  of  religion  necessary.  “I  am 
born  a  Jew,  and  shall  die  a  Jew.”  I  spoke  to  him 
of  the  fallen  state  of  man,  and  pressed  on  him  the 
subjects  of  death,  judgment,  and  eternity,  in  which 
there  is  no  support  for  the  mind  of  man,  save  in  a 
Mediator.  But  all  this  was  as  “  idle  tales”  to  him ; 
he  had  no  solid  belief  in  a  future  state ;  there  may 


THE  JEWS. 


195 


be  and  there  may  not  be ;  we  cannot  tell  any  thing 
about  it. 

This  is  perhaps  the  most  hopeless  state  of  mind 
for  the  reception  of  Divine  truth.  The  weeds  of 
superstition  may  be  rooted  out,  and  the  good  seed 
sown  in  their  room:  but  in  the  barren  soil  of  infi- 

i'  7 

delity,  nothing  of  a  spiritual  kind  can  grow.  Yet  are 
we  not,  on  that  account,  to  withhold  the  presentation 
of  truth  ;  the  Holy  Spirit  can  take  of  the  things  of 
Christ,  and  effectually  show  them,  even  to  the  most 
hardened  infidel ;  changing  the  barren  soil  into  a 
fruitful  field. 

I  found  many  Jews  on  the  continent,  especially  in 
France,  who  had  read  the  New  Testament,  which 
the  London  Jews’  Society  have  largely  distributed. 
This  is  a  great  step  gained,  as  the  word  of  truth 
may  be  brought  home  to  their  conscience  in  a  time 
and  manner  they  little  expect. 

The  Jews  in  the  south  of  Europe  have  less  ac¬ 
quaintance  with  Christianity  than  the  Jews  of  France 
and  Germany ;  but  even  among  them  there  appears 
some  shaking  of  the  dry  bones.  Amongst  the 
younger  members  of  the  community  there  seems  a 
growing  discontent  with  their  present  position ;  a  de¬ 
sire  for  reform  of  some  kind,  some  better  religious 
standing,  that  is  yet  short  of  apostasy  from  Judaism. 
Among  such,  an  able  and  judicious  missionary  may 
find  many  openings. 

The  Jews  who  are  natives  of  the  East,  are,  like 


196 


THE  JEWS. 


the  other  inhabitants,  less  intelligent  than  the  Euro¬ 
peans.  Indeed,  as  may  naturally  be  expected,  the 
character  of  the  Jew  in  every  country,  is  consider¬ 
ably  modified  by  that  of  the  people  among  whom  he 
dwells.  A  great  proportion  of  the  Jews  in  Syria, 
however,  are  not  natives  of  the  East,  but  Europeans 
who,  from  various  motives,  settle  there.  From  my 
interviews  with  them  I  shall  select  such  particulars 
as  may  be  interesting. 

I  found  many  of  them  very  devout,  but  at  the 
same  time  bigoted  and  superstitious.  They  are 
generally  great  students  of  the  Talmud.  In  one  of 
the  totvns  I  met  an  interesting  young  Jew  lately  ar¬ 
rived  from  Russia,  who  had  accompanied  his  father 
to  settle  in  the  Holy  Land.  He  expressed  himself 
not  satisfied  with  the  measure  of  learning  among  the 
Jews  in  the  town  where  his  father  had  fixed  his 
abode.  I  asked  him  if  he  considered  himself  a  com¬ 
petent  judge  of  his  brethren’s  learning :  he  said  he 
was ;  and  mentioned  as  a  proof  of  this,  that  he 
knew  several  volumes  of  the  Talmud  by  heart.  I 
asked  if  he  knew  much  of  the  Bible  by  heart.  He 
said  :  “  No,  it  is  not  the  fashion  among  us  to  learn 
the  Bible  by  heart.”  I  asked  him  why  his  father 
had  left  Russia  to  settle  in  Palestine  ?  He  said  it 
was  on  account  of  the  superior  piety  of  the  Jews  in 
the  latter  country.  “  The  prayers  here  are  most 
excellent,”  said  he :  meaning,  of  course,  that  they 
are  uttered  in  a  devotional  spirit,  since  the  liturgy  is 


THE  JEWS. 


197 


alike  everywhere.  I  inquired  as  to  his  views  about 
the  comino-  of  the  Messiah.  He  said  :  “We  must 

O 

expect  his  coming  every  day,  but  still  he  will  not 
come  till  he  pleases.”  He  had  no  doubt  the  Messiah 
will  come  and  establish  his  kingdom  ;  and  that  this 
will  probably  take  place  at  the  end  of  the  six  thou¬ 
sand  years  from  the  creation. 

One  old  man  asked  me :  What  good  have  people 
derived  from  their  belief  in  Jesus  of  Nazareth  ?  This 
question  I  endeavored  to  answer  by  explaining  the 
nature  and  effects  of  Christianity.  “  If  this  were 
the  case,”  said  he,  “  we  should  find  Christians  the 
best  people  in  the  world  instead  of  the  worst.  The 
Mohammedans  are  not  nearly  so  bad  as  the  Chris¬ 
tians  ;  they  do  not  oppress  us  so  much.”  Then 
followed  the  usual  task  of  endeavoring  to  persuade 
him  that  the  Eastern  Christians  are  no  Christians  at 
all.  I  fear  my  readers  will  be  weary  of  the  con¬ 
stant  recurrence  of  this  subject ;  my  apology  is,  that 
it  met  me  at  every  turn ;  that  never  did  I  converse 
with  a  Jew  who  did  not  bring  it  forward  ;  that  it  is, 
in  fact,  the  greatest  of  all  outward  obstacles  in  the 
way  of  any  really  pious  and  respectable  Jew  giving 
the  subject  of  Christianity  a  moment’s  consideration. 

I  read  to  the  old  man  our  Lord’s  sermon  on  the 
mount,  as  having  been  the  first  passage  in  the  New 
Testament  that  particularly  impressed  me.  He 
listened  with  great  attention,  and  said  :  “  If  these 
principles  were  carried  out,  the  world  would  be  in  a 

17* 


198 


THE  JEWS. 


very  different  state  from  what  it  is  at  present.  Be¬ 
fore  we  parted  he  gave  me  a  solemn  admonition  on 
the  sin  of  forsaking  the  religion  of  my  fathers  ;  and 
asked  what  benefit  I  had  received  that  could  com¬ 
pensate  for  being  cut  off  from  the  people  of  God. 
This  gave  me  a  farther  opportunity  of  explaining  to 
him  the  unsearchable  riches  of  Christ.  Among 
other  things  I  had  gained,  I  could  assure  him  that  I 
possessed  a  much  more  intense  love  of  my  brethren 
than  ever  I  had  before  I  was  a  Christian. 

In  conversing  with  another  aged  Jew  on  the  sub¬ 
ject  of  a  new  birth  unto  righteousness,  I  was  forcibly 
reminded  of  Nicodemus.  “'What!”  said  he,  with 
a  smile,  “  must  I  be  born  again  ?  I  am  an  old  man, 
must  I  become  a  little  infant  again  ?”  The  things 
of  the  Spirit  of  God  must  always  appear  foolishness 
to  the  natural  man. 

I  think  that  in  tracts  written  for  distribution 
among  the  Jews,  the  fall  of  man,  and  consequent 
depravity  of  human  nature,  ought  to  be  brought 
prominently  forward.  There  is  in  every  man’s 
conscience  a  feeling  that,  to  a  certain  extent,  re¬ 
sponds  to  the  truth  of  this,  and  it  is  the  foundation 
of  all  Christian  doctrine  ;  it  is  that  which  renders  a 
mediator  between  God  and  man  needful.  It  is  also 
desirable  to  point  out  to  them,  that  in  Scripture  the 
judgments  of  God  are  not  denounced  against  them 
for  the  neglect  of  outward  worship,  but  for  the 
alienation  of  their  hearts  from  God,  and  to  appeal  to 


THE  JEWS.  199 

them  as  to  whether  that  alienation  does  not  continue 
still.  And  they  should  be  reminded,  that  a  restora¬ 
tion  to  their  own  land,  with  the  addition  of  all  out¬ 
ward  prosperity,  could  not  make  them  happy,  un¬ 
less  they  experienced  a  moral  and  spiritual  renova¬ 
tion  ;  unless  they  received  the  “  new  heart  and  new 
spirit”  promised  by  God. 

I  must  now,  according  to  the  request  of  many 
friends,  give  my  views  as  to  the  best  mode  of  endea¬ 
voring  to  convert  my  brethren  to  Christianity.  It  is 
asked  by  some  :  Why  have  any  particular  mode  of 
converting  Jews  ?  May  they  not  be  converted,  like 
any  other  sinners,  simply  by  the  preaching  of  the 
Gospel '!  Most  certainly  they  might,  if  we  could 
only  get  them  to  come  to  hear  it.  If  the  Jews 
would  regularly  attend  the  ministrations  of  a  faithful 
preacher  of  the  Gospel,  nothing  more  would  be  re¬ 
quired.  But  before  they  can  be  brought  to  do  this, 
much  previous  persuasion  and  instruction  is  required. 
No  Jew  would  regularly  attend  a  Christian  place  of 
worship,  until  he  had  made  up  his  mind  to  abandon 
Judaism.  In  the  first  age  of  Christianity,  the  great 
majority  of  them  were  converted  in  their  own  land 
by  their  own  brethren ;  those  scattered  in  the  Ro¬ 
man  provinces,  were  preached  to  in  their  own  syna¬ 
gogues.  Although  Christianity  and  the  human 
heart  remain  unaltered,  man’s  outward  circum¬ 
stances  are  changed  from  age  to  age  ;  and  the  out¬ 
ward  means  we  use  for  bringing  the  truths  of  the 


200 


THE  JEWS. 


Gospel  to  bear  upon  the  mind  of  man,  must  be  in 
some  measure  altered  to  suit  these  outward  circum¬ 
stances.  The  first  evangelists  preached  to  the 
crowd  in  the  open  air  ;  this  plan  has  in  all  ages, 
down  to  the  present  day,  been  pursued,  and  often 
successfully ;  but  when  attempted  a  few  years  back* 
with  the  Jews,  there  was  nothing  but  scenes  of  riot 
and  confusion.  People  are  apt  to  forget  that  the 
Gospel  of  Christ  has  to  encounter  from  the  JewTs, 
not  merely  the  natural  enmity  of  the  carnal  mind, 
but  the  prejudice  against  Christianity  caused  by 
more  than  a  thousand  years  of  bitter  persecution 
from  nominal  Christians,  and  by  the  vice  and  un¬ 
godliness  they  daily  behold  among  them.  In  short, 
the  difficulties  and  obstacles  in  the  way  of  a  Jew’s 
conversion,  can  only  be  fully  known  to  those  who 
labor  among  them.  In  stating  what  I  conceive  to 
be  the  most  eligible  mode  of  attempting  a  mission 
among  the  Jews,  let  it  not  be  said  that  I  look  too 
much  to  human  instrumentality.  I  am  quite  con¬ 
vinced  that  God  could  bless  any  instrument,  or  that 
He  could  convert  the  whole  world,  if  He  pleased, 
without  any  instrumentality  at  all.  But  He  has  not 
only  commanded  human  efforts,  but  in  His  provi¬ 
dential  dealings  with  men,  we  do  not  find  that  He 
ordinarily  works  with  instruments  that  are  in  them¬ 
selves  inefficient.  No  one  can  deny  that  He  might, 


*  By  the  Rev.  Edward  Irving. 


THE  JEWS. 


201 


had  He  so  pleased,  have  brought  about  the  Reforma¬ 
tion  by  an  ignorant  peasant  ,*  but  He  chose  to  do  it 
by  a  Luther. 

I  have  no  hesitation  in  saying,  that  the  first  thing 
requisite  in  establishing  a  mission  to  the  Jews,  is  to 
find  out  a  man  fit  for  the  work.  A  man  may  have 
piety,  and  zeal,  and  learning,  and  yet  be  utterly  un¬ 
fit  for  it.  Unless  his  piety  be  combined  with  an 
ardent  love  to  the  Jews  as  the  chosen  people  of  God, 
he  is  quite  unfit  to  be  a  missionary  to  them.  Unless 
his  zeal  be  guided  by  a  knowledge  of  the  Jewish 
character,  its  habits,  its  prejudices,  its  peculiar 
temperament,  it  will  then  be  a  zeal  not  “  according 
to  knowledge.”  And  unless  his  learning  consist  of 
that  which  the  Jews  account  learning,  it  is  to  them 
no  learning  at  all.  They  have  as  little  understand¬ 
ing  of,  and  as  little  respect  for,  that  which  consti¬ 
tutes  the  glory  of  a  senior  wrangler  or  first-class 
man,  as  the  man  of  Oxford  or  Cambridge  has  for 
the  learning  of  the  Talmud.  A  missionary  to  the 
Jews  must  be  able  to  meet  them  on  their  own  ground  ; 
must  not  only  have  patience  to  listen  to  their  ques¬ 
tions  and  cavils,  but  ability  to  answer  them.  Many 
things  that  may  appear  mere  captious  objections  to  a 
Gentile  Christian,  are  really  difficulties  that  occur  to 
the  Jewish  mind ;  warped  as  it  is,  in  some  points, 
by  early  associations. 

It  is  very  awkward  to  speak  of  living  characters, 
(and  yet  long  may  the  one  of  whom  I  am  now  to 


202 


THE  JEWS. 


speak  continue  to  present  this  obstacle  to  freedom 
of  animadversion,)  but  the  case  of  the  Rev.  Dr. 
Duncan  at  Pesth,  so  completely  answers  my  idea  of 
what  a  mission  to  the  Jews  ought  to  be,  that  I  must 
be  permitted  to  adduce  it.  Here  is  a  man  who  is 
learned,  not  only  in  a  Gentile,  but  in  a  Jewish  sense  ; 
and  one,  whose  age  and  position  in  society,  show 
the  Jews  at  once  that  he  is  not  a  mere  hireling ;  but 
that,  on  the  contrary,  for  such  a  man  to  become  a 
missionary  to  the  Jews,  is  a  positive  sacrifice  in  a 
worldly  point  of  view.  It  surely  will  not  be  sup¬ 
posed  that  I  mean  to  say  a  young  missionary  may 
not  be  equally  sincere  and  self-denying  ;  but  to  the 
Jews  this  is  not  so  obvious  ;  in  very  many  cases  they 
settle  the  whole  matter  satisfactorily  to  their  own 
minds,  by  saying,  “  He  is  paid  for  it.” 

Dr.  Duncan  settled  down  quietly  among  the  Jews 
at  Pesth,  opening  his  house  to  them,  conciliating 
them  by  kindness ;  conversing,  arguing,  reading 
with  them  ;  admitting  them  to  the  hospitalities  of  a 
well-ordered  family.  For  more  than  a  year  nothing 
seemed  to  have  been  done  ;  but  there  was  an  under 
current  at  work  that  in  due  time  was  made  mani¬ 
fest  ;  and  it  has  resulted  in  decidedly  the  most  suc¬ 
cessful  work  among  the  Jews  of  modern  times. 
Their  Rabbis  cannot  affect  to  despise  a  man  of  his 
undoubted  learning :  nor  can  the  Jews  in  their 
hearts  believe  that  he  is  actuated  by  any  thing  but 
love  to  their  nation.  Some,  it  is  true,  have  resorted 


THE  JEWS. 


203 


to  the  old  cry  that  has  been  raised  against  faithful 
missionaries  in  all  ages,  that  his  efforts  are  connected 
with  political  movements ;  but  happily  he,  and  the 
brethren  who  are  now  there,  have  no  difficulty  in 
disproving  such  a  charge. 

But  to  all  this  it  may  be  objected,  that  we  cannot 
meet  every  day  with  such  men  as  Dr.  Duncan  and 
Dr.  M‘Caul.  To  this  I  can  only  reply,  that  in  the 
present  state  of  awakened  feeling  about  the  Jews, 
we  may  hope  that  men  of  piety  and  talent  will  use 
the  same  means  to  fit  themselves  for  the  work  that 
these  have  done,  and  may  be  as  willing  to  devote 
their  energies  to  the  cause  of  Israel.  But  it  is  chiefly 
at  the  commencement  of  a  mission  that  such  men 
are  needed.  When  the  work  is  once  begun,  labor¬ 
ers  of  a  more  ordinary  kind  may  carry  it  on, 
though  of  course  it  is  desirable  that  their  attainments 
should  never  fall  much  below  this  standard. 

I  must  also  express  my  strong  conviction  of  the 
importance  of  London  as  a  station  for  a  mission  to 
the  Jews.  There  are  more  than  twice  as  many 
Jews  in  London  as  in  the  whole  of  Palestine,  while 
the  number  of  actual  laborers  amonqr  them  is  small 
indeed,  compared  with  those  in  Palestine.  In  Bey- 
rout  there  are  but  twenty-four  Jewish  families  ;  and 
when  I  was  there  this  scanty  population  had  two 
missionaries  !  A  really  efficient  mission  in  London, 
so  managed  as  to  bring  forward  young  men  of  intel¬ 
ligence  and  education,  might  be  a  nursery  for  mis- 


204 


THE  JEWS. 


sionaries  to  the  Jews  in  every  part  of  the  world. 
Like  Jerusalem  on  the  day  of  Pentecost,  there  are 
dwelling  in  London  Jews  “  out  of  every  nation  un¬ 
der  heaven  and  in  no  other  place  are  there  such 
facilities  for  gaining  acquaintance  with  all  that  a 
missionary  ought  to  know.  My  full  conviction  is, 
that  London  ought  to  be  regarded  as  the  principal 
missionary  station,  and  that  any  decided  movement 
among  the  Jews  in  London  would  attract  more  gene¬ 
ral  notice  than  a  movement  in  any  other  part  of  the 
world. 

I  must  now  say  a  few  words  on  a  subject  that  is 
frequently  discussed  at  present, — the  propriety  of 
giving  temporal  relief  in  connection  with  the  reli¬ 
gious  instruction  of  the  Jews.  No  doubt  it  may  be 
given,  and  probably  is  often  given,  in  such  an  inju¬ 
dicious  way  as  to  operate  as  a  bounty  upon  hypo¬ 
crisy.  The  best  way  to  avoid  this  is,  where  cases 
of  real  distress  are  presented,  let  them  be  relieved 
simply  on  the  score  of  benevolence ;  since,  if  they 
can  meet  with  sympathy  and  relief  as  poor  Jews, 
there  will  be  no  need  to  pretend  a  desire  to  inquire 
into  Christianity. 

After  many  years’  experience,  I  have  come,  I  may 
say  almost  against  my  will,  to  the  conclusion,  that 
little  can  be  done  in  this  country  towards  the  con¬ 
version  of  the  Jews  without  a  temporary  home  for 
the  shelter  of  inquirers.  Indeed,  this,  with  the  neces¬ 
sary  expense  attending  it,  seems  to  me  one  of  the 


THE  JEWS. 


205 


chief  reasons  for  carrying  on  measures  for  the  con¬ 
version  of  Jews  in  this  country  by  means  of  a  public 
society.  On  the  continent  matters  are  very  different. 
Suppose  a  Jew  in  any  rank  of  life  to  be  awakened 
there,  it  may  happen  that  there  is  not  within  his 
reach  any  really  pious  minister  who  may  hold  forth 
to  him  the  word  of  life.  A  missionary  to  the  Jews 
is,  therefore,  indispensable.  But  in  England,  if  any 
Jew,  not  merely  in  the  upper  ranks  of  society,  but 
any  tradesman  or  journeyman  who  is  able  to  sup¬ 
port  himself  by  his  daily  labor,  wishes  to  inquire  into 
the  truth  of  Christianity,  he  will  never  think  of  going 
to  a  society  for  this  purpose ;  he  will  apply  for  in¬ 
struction  to  some  minister  of  the  gospel,  or  Christian 
friend.  For  these,  therefore,  no  special  missionary 
nor  society  is  needed ;  in  the  privacy  of  their  own 
house  or  lodging  they  may  search  the  Scriptures, 
unmolested  by  Rabbi  or  Elder  of  the  synagogue. 

Very  different  is  the  case  of  the  poor  wanderer, 
who  earns  his  livelihood  by  going  from  town  to  town ; 
whose  home  is  a  public-house ;  whose  daily  compa¬ 
nions  are  the  dregs  of  society.  “  Why,”  perhaps 
some  committee-man  of  a  Jews’  society  may  say, 
“  Why  cannot  the  Jews  learn  religion  like  other 
people?  Let  them  read  the  Scriptures  diligently, 
and  come  to  our  missionaries  with  their  difficulties. 
All  this  they  may  do  without  forsaking  their  lawful 
callings,  and  throwing  themselves  on  us  for  main¬ 
tenance.”  Ah!  friend,  wouldst  thou  reason  thus  if 

18 


206 


THE  JEWS. 


that  poor  Jew  were  thine  own  prodigal  son  ?  Wouldst 
thou  say :  “  My  son,  it  is  true,  is  not  in  the  best 
possible  circumstances  for  attending  to  the  concerns 
of  his  soul.  He  travels  with  jewellery ;  finds  his  best 
customers  among  the  wretched  inhabitants  of  the 
haunts  of  infamy ;  constantly  associates  with  the 
worst  of  characters ;  spends  his  evenings  in  the 
tavern,  and  throws  himself  down  to  sleep  in  one 
corner  of  a  room  occupied  by  several  others.  Never¬ 
theless,  if  he  is  sincere,  there  is  nothing  in  all  this 
to  hinder  him  to  become  a  Christian.”  Is  he  to  take 
out  his  Bible,  and  diligently  study  it,  amid  the  sounds 
of  the  fiddle  and  the  drunken  song  ?  Is  he  to  kneel 
down  and  pray  amid  the  shouts  of  derision,  the  filthy 
and  blasphemous  jests  of  the  wretched  crew  around 
him  ?  Even  in  this  state,  doubtless,  the  grace  of 
God  could  reach  his  heart ;  but  this  mode  of  reason¬ 
ing  would  set  aside  all  efforts  of  a  spiritual  kind 
whatsoever ;  ministers,  missionaries,  churches,  and 
private  Christians,  might  desist  from  seeking  the 
conversion  of  sinners  ;  might  comfortably  fold  their 
hands  and  go  to  sleep,  justifying  themselves  by  the 
orthodox  doctrine,  that  God  can  do  it  all  very  well 
without  them  ! 

“  But  then,”  says  the  objector,  “  if  we  had  a  home, 
however  homely,  it  would  hold  out  an  inducement  to 
persons  to  pretend  to  be  inquirers  into  Christianity, 
for  the  sake  of  board  and  lodging.”  No  doubt  it 
might ;  and  therefore  a  sound  discretion  must  be 


THE  JEWS. 


207 


exercised  in  the  admission  of  inmates,  who  ought  at 
first  to  be  received  only  for  a  month  on  probation, 
during  which  time  a  superintendent  of  ordinary  dis¬ 
cernment  would  be  in  a  great  measure  able  to  judge 
of  their  sincerity.  The  outlay  of  some  forty  shillings 
would  not  be  so  great  an  evil,  to  rescue  a  poor  Jew 
for  a  whole  month  from  the  polluting  influence  of 
evil  association,  and  to  place  him  in  the  genial  at¬ 
mosphere  of  Christian  kindness  and  purity ;  to  instruct 
him  in  the  word  of  God ;  to  warn,  to  exhort,  and  to 
encourage  him  to  cast  himself  as  a  helpless  sinner 
on  the  free  mercy  of  God  in  Christ  Jesus.  Suppose 
we  give  the  largest  allowance  of  such  hypocrites  for 
which  any  objector  would  contend ;  suppose  there 
should  be  one  every  month  ;  then,  at  an  outlay  of  one 
pound  in  every  thousand  of  the  annual  income  of  the 
London  Jews’  Society,  we  should  have  twelve  Jews 
furnished  with  such  knowledge  as  might,  though 
now  rejected,  afterwards  become  to  them  “  a  savor 
of  life  unto  life.”  If  to  any  of  them  it  should  be¬ 
come  “  a  savor  of  death  unto  death,”  his  blood  will  be 
upon  his  own  head,  and  will  not  be  required  at  the 
hands  of  the  society.* 

At  first  sight,  it  appears  desirable  to  combine 


*  In  Liverpool,  an  institution  such  as  I  have  described, 
supported  and  managed  by  members  of  the  Church  of 
England,  has  been  carried  on  for  some  years  with  great 
success. 


208 


THE  JEWS. 


manual  labor  with  religious  instruction,  as  in  the 
Operative  Jewish  Institution  in  London.  But  the 
great  expense  incurred  in  teaching  and  carrying  on 
any  branch  of  trade,  is  not  compensated  by  equiva¬ 
lent  benefit  to  the  inmates.  Men  in  such  circum¬ 
stances  do  not  learn  a  trade  thoroughly  enough  to 
be  able  afterwards  to  gain  a  livelihood  by  it.  In  cases 
where  it  is  considered  desirable  that  a  person  should 
learn  a  mechanical  trade,  it  would  be  much  better, 
after  he  has  been  instructed  in  Christianity,  to  ap¬ 
prentice  him  to  a  pious  tradesman. 

In  regard  to  what  may  be  called  the  aggressive 
measures  of  a  Jews’  society,  the  mode  in  which  they 
should  seek  to  excite  a  spirit  of  inquiry  amongst 
Jews,  I  do  not  think  any  rules  that  may  be  laid  down 
are  of  much  value.  I  can  only  repeat,  get  fit  men, 
and  when  they  are  fairly  engaged  in  the  work  they 
will  find  fit  measures.  Lectures,  tracts,  visits, — all 
are  good,  if  well  managed ;  all  are  worthless  if  not 
well  managed.  Some  well-meaning  men  may  spend 
their  lives  in  talking  on  religion  to  Jews,  with  no 
other  result  than  that  of  greatly  increasing  the  diffi¬ 
culties  of  those  who  come  after  them  on  a  like 
errand. 

The  separate  and  scattered  state  of  believing  Jews 
is  much  to  be  regretted.  Many  of  them,  especially 
in  the  higher  classes  of  society,  become  completely 
amalgamated  with  their  Gentile  brethren,  and  cease 
to  be  known  as  Jews  at  all,  while  the  great  majority 


THE  JEWS. 


209 


are  driven  hither  and  thither,  by  the  difficulty  of  ob¬ 
taining  “  the  meat  which  perisheth.”  Nothing  would 
tend  so  much  to  excite  a  spirit  of  inquiry  amongst 
the  Jews  as  the  movements  of  a  body  of  their  con¬ 
verted  brethren ;  not  as  forming  themselves  into  a 
new  sect  in  the  Christian  church,  but  as  bearing  a 
united  testimony  for  Christ  before  their  brethren  :  co¬ 
operating  with  heart  and  hand  for  the  spiritual  and 
temporal  good  of  Israel.  I  conclude  by  affectionately 
urging  the  consideration  of  this  on  all  my  converted 
brethren,  reminding  them,  that  in  becoming  Chris¬ 
tians,  they  do  not  cease  to  be  Jews,  and  that,  “  for 
their  brethren  and  companions’  sakes,”  they  ought 
still  to  bear,  if  it  yet  be  so,  the  reproach  of  belong¬ 
ing  to  that  despised  race  ,*  despised  by  men,  but  be¬ 
loved  by  God  for  the  fathers’  sakes. 


DOCTRINES 


\ 

OF 

THE  GREEK  CHURCH. 


The  following  account  of  the  Greek  Church  is 
written  by  a  gentleman  who  has  resided  many 
years  in  the  East.  It  may  serve  to  correct  the 
vague  ideas  entertained  of  it  in  this  country,  and 
dispel  the  notion  of  its  being  greatly  superior  to  the 
Romish  Church  in  purity  of  doctrine,  which  gene¬ 
rally  obtains  among  those  who  are  little  acquainted 
with  it. 

The  Rev.  H.  Southgate,  delegate  of  the  American  Pro¬ 
testant  Episcopal  Church  at  Constantinople,  has  de¬ 
clared, ^  “The  more  I  see  of  the  Eastern  Churches, 
the  more  deeply  I  am  convinced  that  a  union  between 
them  and  us  is  practicable  without  any  sacrifice  of  Catho¬ 
lic  principle.”  And  again, t  “So  far  as  my  own  know¬ 
ledge  yet  goes,  I  can  perceive  nothing  in  the  Eastern 
Churches  to  which  I  could  make  exception,  if  their  whole 
form  of  worship  and  rites  were  imbued  with  a  spiritual 
life.  The  want  of  this,  and  not  false  doctrines,  (as  purga¬ 
tory  and  tran  substantiation ;  nor  practices  in  themselves 
unchristian,  as  worshipping  the  host  in  the  Romish 
Church,)  is  the  grand  and  sole  corruption,  so  far  as  I  yet 
.  know.”  Mr.  Southgate’s  attention  was  called  to  this  latter 
extract  by  certain  clergymen  in  his  own  Church,  at  a  sub¬ 
sequent  period,  but  while  he  replied  to  some  other  stric- 


*  See  letter  of  Mr.  S.  to  Mr.  Tomilson,  Secretary  of  the  Society  for 
promoting  Christian  Knowledge. 

t  See  Spirit  of  Missions,  of  Feb.,  1841,  an  American  Episcopal 
Church  periodical. 

(210) 


211 


tures  of  theirs,  he  takes  no  notice  of  this  paragraph,  so 
that  it  may  fairly  be  presumed  that  his  views  of  the 
Eastern  Churches  remain  unchanged.  The  same  ideas 
of  the  practicability  of  a  union  with  the  Eastern  Churches 
without  any  sacrifice  of  Catholic  principle ,  it  is  understood,  are 
entertained  by  the  Oxford  party  generally,  in  England  and 
America.  And  I  infer  from  the  letter  addressed  to  the 
Eastern  ecclesiastics,  recommendatory  of  Bishop  Alex¬ 
ander,  by  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  that  that  prelate 
and  his  advisers  hold  similar  sentiments. 

Mr.  Southgate  sees  nothing  amiss  in  the  Eastern 
Churches,  if  only  the  whole  form  of  worship  and  rites 
were  imbued  with  a  spiritual  life .  To  be  imbued  with  spiritual 
life  means,  I  suppose,  when  we  speak  of  acts  of  religious 
worship,  that  the  Holy  Spirit  is  present  with  the  worship¬ 
per,  accompanying  or  inditing  his  prayers,  and  giving 
life  and  power  to  the  word  heard  or  read.  We  are  taught 
in  the  Scriptures,  that  in  acceptable  prayer  the  Spirit 
maketh  intercession  for  us,  and  we  are  said  to  be  sancti¬ 
fied  through  the  truth.  (Rom.  viii.  26.  John  xvii.  17.) 
Now,  if  God  be  the  only  proper  object  of  prayer,  can  we 
expect  him  to  give  his  Spirit  in  aid  of  petitions  addressed 
to  false  gods  or  to  angels,  or  to  departed  saints  1  Take, 
for  instance,  the  following  prayer,  used  in  the  Syrian 
Greek  Church,  as  well  as  in  the  Maronite  Chapel :  “  O 
Virgin,  mother  of  God,  forsake  me  not,  who  am  seeking 
from  thee  victory  and  help.  Have  mercy  on  me,  for  in 
thee  do  I  place  my  trust.  O  thou  who  art  free  from  fault, 
grant  me  fountains  of  tears,  that  in  them  I  may  wash 
away  my  many  sins,  for  in  thee  do  I  place  all  my  hope. 
O,  the  espoused  of  God,  hasten  to  my  succour  and  deli¬ 
verance  before  I  perish,  that  I  may  escape  from  the  hands 
of  malicious  devices,  and  from  the  last  awful  catastro¬ 
phe.”  Now,  what  say  we  to  this  1  Can  such  a  prayer 
be  imbued  with  spiritual  life  1  In  other  words,  can  we 
believe  that  such  petitions,  thus  addressed,  are  ever  in¬ 
dited  or  accompanied  by  the  Holy  Spirit  1  I  tremble  as  I 
copy  this  prayer,  and  remember  the  High  and  Holy  One 
who  has  declared,  “My  glory  will  I  not  give  to  another, 
neither  my  praise  to  graven  images.”  And  I  tremble  yet 
more  when  I  hear  a  professedly  Protestant  missionary 
say,  the  forms  are  good, — they  only  need  to  be  imbued  with 


212 


spiritual  life.  Perhaps  Mr.  S.  will  say  he  never  saw  this 
prayer,  as  it  seems  to  be  used  in  Syria,  and  so  feels  him¬ 
self  acquitted.  But  if  not  this,  he  must  have  examined 
very  superficially  not  to  have  found  others  equally  blas¬ 
phemous.  He  reads  Greek,  I  believe ;  let  him  run  over 
the  service  books  of  the  “  Orthodox  Eastern  Church,”  and 
the  authorized  expositions  of  them,  and  he  will  decide,  if 
he  be  truly  a  Protestant,  that  something  more  is  needed 
than  that  the  existing  forms  be  imbued  with  a  spiritual 
life.  Let  him  examine,  for  instance,  the  little  manual 
called  the  Synopsis,  and  he  will  find  therein  nine  prayers 
addressed  to  the  Virgin  Mary,  one  of  them  twelve  pages 
in  length.  In  these  prayers  he  will  hear  her  called  “  our 
'  shield,”  “  our  hope,”  “  our  only  refuge,”  “  our  propitiation 
he  will  hear  her  addressed  in  language  such  as  should  be 
used  only  in  approaching  the  Supreme  Being ;  and 
blessings  asked  such  as  it  alone  can  grant.  Mr.  South¬ 
gate’s  language  certainly  implies  that  he  has  not  been  in¬ 
attentive  to  the  dogmas  and  practices  of  the  Eastern 
Churches.  How,  then,  he  could  hazard  such  un-Pro¬ 
testant  assertions  must  be  left  for  himself  to  explain. 

In  the  religious  systems  of  the  East,  the  Church  is 
really  put  in  the  place  of  Christ,  tradition  in  the  place  or 
alongside  of  the  Scriptures,  and  the  altar  in  the  place  of 
the  pulpit.  The  people  are  taught  to  speak  of  union  with 
the  Church  very  much  as  Protestants  are  accustomed  to 
speak  of  union  with  Christ :  instead  of  “  out  of  me  ye  can 
do  nothing,”  it  is,  “out  of  the  Church  ye  caii  do  nothing” 
The  Church  feeds,  teaches,  saves.  And  by  Church  is  not 
meant  the  invisible  Church,  out  of  which,  we  all  confess, 
there  is  no  salvation,  but  this  or  that  organization,  of  ne¬ 
cessity  Episcopal ;  some  limiting  the  possibility  of  salva¬ 
tion  to  their  own  communion,  and  others  very  conside¬ 
rately  extending  it.  “  The  Church,”  says  an  old  Greek* 
writer,  and  a  sanctioned  expositor  of  the  Liturgy,  “  is  mar¬ 
ried  to  Christ  through  baptism,  and  unction,  and  ordination ,  and  the 
communion,  and  the  other  mysteries  not  a  word  being  said 


*  Simon,  Archbishop  of  Thessalonica,  in  the  fifteenth  century.  His 
works  have  been  translated  into  modern  Greek,  and  published  with  a 
recommendation  by  one  of  the  patriarchs.  Jeremiah,  Patriarch  of 
Constantinople,  in  his  discussion  with  the  German  divines,  in  the 
sixteenth  century,  made  constant  use  of  his  writings. 


213 


about  faith.  And  the  authorized  expounders  of  the 
Canons  (see  rMaXtov,  page  thirty-one,  Athen’s  edition) 
say,  that  the  grace  of  the  Holy  Spirit  no  longer  resides  in 
the  Romish  Church,  because  trine  immersion  is  not  practised 
there.  In  this  scheme  salvation  is  made  to  depend  entirely 
upon  the  performance  of  certain  ceremonies ,  and  these  cere¬ 
monies  performed  in  a  particular  way. 

This  invisible,  intangible  corporation  called  the  Church, 
is  supposed  to  be  pervaded  in  all  its  offices  and  ordinances 
with  the  Holy  Spirit,  however  wicked  the  officers  may 
be,  and  however  absurd  and  unscriptural  the  ordinances. 
To  this  corporation  the  Spirit  is  supposed  to  be  limited  in 
all  his  gracious  influences.  The  expounders  of  the 
Greek  Canons,  as  we  have  just  seen,  expressly  attest  that 
the  Spirit  does  not  reside  in  the  Romish  Church,  princi¬ 
pally  because  trine  immersion  is  not  practised  there-;  and 
of  course  he  cannot  dwell  in  any  of  the  Protestant 
Churches.  The  Spirit  is  conveyed  only  through  certain 
channels,  and  its  conveyance  depends  upon*  the  will  of 
certain  men  ;  “  for,”  say  the  expounders  alluded  to,  “  it  is 
by  the  grace  of  the  Holy  Spirit  that  the  orthodox  (i.  e.  the 
Greek)  priests  perform  the  mysteries.  All  others  being 
\mbaptized,  have  not  that  grace,  and  of  course  cannot 
transmit  it.”  What  follows  1  An  individual  not  within 
the  precincts  of  this  imaginary  corporation  cannot  receive 
the  Holy  Spirit.  He  must  be  transferred  within  those 
limits.  But  how  is  the  transfer  accomplished?  Only  by 
baptism.  Here,  then,  we  have  the  origin  of  the  doctrine 
of  baptismal  regeneration.  Without  trine  immersion,  a  man 
cannot  get  within  the  boundaries  of  the  operation  of 
Divine  grace.  With  it  he  comes  into  a  territory,  every 
part  of  which  is  full  of  the  Spirit.  Even  the  water  and 
the  oil  and  the  bread  in  that  blissful  region  are  redolent 
of  grace,  and  the  hands  that  administer  them  are  all  holy. 

Mr.  Southgate  sees  nothing  in  the  Eastern  Churches  as 
incompatible  with  a  union,  without  any  sacrifice  of  Catho¬ 
lic  principle.  All  that  is  necessary  is,  that  the  existing 
forms  of  worship  and  rites  be  imbued  with  a  spiritual  life. 
Let  us,  then,  look  a  little  more  in  detail  at  some  of  these 
rites,  as  practised  among  the  Greeks.  I  shall  again  quote 
from  the  Archbishop  of  Thessalonica,  whose  exposition 
of  the  service  books  is  so  highly  esteemed  among  the  eccle- 


214 


siastics.  In  his  explanation  of  the  baptismal  service,  we 
have  these  words — “  After  a  little  delay,  the  priest 
breathes  upon  the  water  three  times,  thus  infusing  it  with 
the  more  richly  Divine  grace  in  imitation  of  Christ,  and 
in  accordance  with  the  word  which  says,  the  Lord  moved 
upon  the  water,  and  which  had  reference  to  baptism. 
He  then  again  seals  the  water  with  his  hands,  making 
the  sign  of  the  cross,  and  saying,  ‘Let  all  opposing 
powers  within  be  destroyed,  that  the  water  may  become 
spiritual  and  holy,  that  no  evil  of  the  devil  may  be  con¬ 
cealed  in  it,  and  that  it  may  be  able  to  create  anew,  to 
sanctify  and  to  change  into  the  sons  of  God  such  as  are 
baptized  in  the  same,  and  make  them  the  children  of 
light.’  ”  After  a  description  of  certain  other  ceremonies 
preparatory  to  the  baptism,  he  adds,  “  Then  the  laver  is 
tilled  with  the  Holy  Ghost,  and  the  water  contains  within 
itself  the  invisible  Christ.”  After  the  baptism,  we  have 
this  paragraph  :  “  The  Divine  water  of  baptism  in  which 
sin  has  been  drowned,  and  into  which  Christ  and  the 
Holy  Spirit  have  come,  and  wherein  the  man  has  been  re¬ 
newed,  should  be  poured  out  in  some  sacred  place,  and 
not  where  the  feet  of  those  who  do  not  understand  this 
mystery  can  tread  upon  it.”  Once  more  from  the  same 
author :  “  When  the  baptized  person  has  been  regene¬ 
rated,  (baptized,)  he  comes  out  new  and  enlightened,  and 
the  son  of  God,  from  the  holy  laver,  our  spiritual  mother, 
which  is  in  place  of  the  pure  and  holy  womb  of  the 
mother  of  God.”  “As  the  pure  blood  and  holy  womb  of 
the  Virgin,  through  means  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  effected  the 
incarnation  of  the  Word  of  God,  so  the  pure  water  of  the 
laver  and  the  Holy  Ghost  (i.  e.  the  Spirit  in  the  water,  as 
in  the  womb  of  the  Virgin)  have  wrought  our  pure  second 
birth.”  Let  any  one  carefully  read  the  prayers  and 
exorcisms,  as  used  in  the  baptismal  service,  and  he  will 
see  that,  awful  as  the  preceding  language  of  the  Archbishop 
is,  he  is  a  devout  and  faithful  expositor.  Now,  what  says 
Mr.  S.  to  this!  Will  there  be  no  sacrifice  of  principle  in 
effecting  a  union  with  a  Church  that  holds  such  views  1 
Is  this  form  very  good,  and  does  it  only  need  to  be  imbued 
with  a  spiritual  life  to  make  it  acceptable  to  a  Protestant 
clergyman  ? 

Let  us  turn  now  to  the  Communion  Service.  And  here 

/ 


215 


we  have  for  our  teacher  one  of  the  patriarchs  of  Constan¬ 
tinople,  Jeremiah,  who  lived  in  the  latter  part  of  the  six¬ 
teenth  century.  About  thirty  years  after  Luther’s  death, 
several  learned  German  divines,  one  of  them  a  professor 
in  the  University  of  Tubingen,  opened  a  correspondence 
with  the  Patriarch  just  mentioned,  on  the  subject  of  the 
differences  between  the  Protestants  and  Romanists.  The 
divines  had  hoped  to  find  that  the  dogmas  of  the  Greek 
Church  wrere  substantially  accordant  with  their  Protestant 
views.  The  reply  of  the  Patriarch,  in  three  long  letters, 
in  which  he  exhibits  in  detail  the  doctrines  of  that  Church, 
dispelled  all  their  hopes.  They  had  sent  him  the  Confes¬ 
sion  of  Aug  shir g,  and  had  in  a  masterly  manner  answered 
two  of  his  letters.  But  in  his  final  reply,  the  Patriarch 
tells  them  that  while  they  rejected  some  of  the  Sacra¬ 
ments,  they  perverted  those  they  did  receive ;  and  he 
closes  by  begging  them  to  write  no  more  on  theological 
subjects,  inasmuch  as  they  were  determined  to  wrest  from 
him  the  authority  in  which  he  trusted,  viz.,  the  holy  and 
divine  words  of  the  Fathers. 

The  Patriarch  says,  in  regard  to  the  Communion,  “  The 
bread  becomes  the  body  of  Christ,  and  the  wine  and  water 
becomes  the  blood  of  Christ,  by  the  intervention  of  the 
Holy  Ghost,  who  changes  them  in  a  way  incomprehensi¬ 
ble  to  the  reason  and  understanding  of  man.  The  bread, 
I  say,  and  the  wine  and  water  are  changed  by  the  Holy 
Spirit,  in  an  incomprehensible  manner,  and  are  no  longer 
two,  but- one  and  the  same.  The  bread  and  wine  are  not 
the  symbols  of  the  body  and  blood  of  Christ,  (God  forbid,) 
but  the  very  deified  body  of  the  Lord.”  Page  184,  “ The 
Catholic  Church  (i.  e.  the  Greek)  has  determined  that  after  the 
consecration  the  bread  is  changed  into  the  very  body  of 
Christ,  and  the  wine  into  the  very  blood  of  Christ,  by  the 
Holy  Spirit.”  Page  49,  “  By  the  grace  of  the  Almighty 
Spirit  the  bread  is  changed  and  converted  into  the  very 
body  of  the  Lord,  and  the  wine  into  the  very  blood  of  the 
Lord” 

Here,  then,  we  have  the  doctrine  of  transubstantiation 
expressed  in  words  the  most  explicit.  And  does  this  con¬ 
stitute  no  obstacle  to  the  so  much  talked  of  union  l 

The  principal  repository  of  Divine  grace  in  this  Church 
system  is  the  chrism,  or  anointing  oil ;  into  the  baptismal 


216 


water,  grace  is  conveyed  as  occasion  demands ;  but  in 
the  chrism  it  has  a  permanent  abode.  For  the  Greek 
Church  it  is  prepared  at  Constantinople  by  the  Patriarch 
and  his  clergy.  A  long  service  is  read  over  it,  and  a 
multitude  of  prayers  offered ;  and  during  the  process,  the 
Holy  Spirit  is  supposed  to  descend  and  diffuse  himself 
through  it.  It  is  thence  sent  to  the  various  churches,  as 
need  requires,  and  kept  most  reverentially;  the  people 
generally  seeming  to  have  no  other  idea  of  the  Divine 
Spirit  than  as  contained  in  this  oil.  For  the  Armenians 
it  is  made  at  Echmiadzin,  the  seat  of  their  Patriarch,  and 
in  the  several  churches  it  is  kept  in  small  vessels,  made 
in  the  form  of  a  dove,  which,  I  have  been  told  by  Armeni¬ 
ans,  the  people  actually  call  the  Holy  Spirit.  “  By  this 
chrism,”  says  the  expounder  of  the  Liturgy,  whom  we 
have  before  quoted,  “  Christ  is  formed  in  our  hearts,  and 
we  become  the  temple  of  God  the  Father,  and  also  of  his 
Son  Jesus  Christ,  and  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  This  chrism, 
therefore,  completes  our  baptism,  and  makes  us  temples 
of  the  Trinity.  On  this  account  it  is  used  after  baptism, 
and  gives  us  the  indwelling  of  the  Spirit.” 

Does  Mr.  S.  see  nothing  here  in  the  way  of  a  union 
with  the  Eastern  Churches  1 

Mr.  S.  tells  us,  in  an  extract  at  the  beginning  of  this 
article,  that  he  discovers  as  yet  in  the  ‘‘  Eastern  Churches” 
no  “  false  doctrines,”  “  nor  practices  in  themselves  un¬ 
christian.”  We  leave  it  for  our  readers  to  decide,  if  they 
do  not  find  both,  from  the  quotations  we  have  made  from 
the  highest  authorities  in  the  Greek  Church.  On  this 
subject  we  shall  not  enter  at  present,  if  at  all.  A  volume, 
rather  than  an  essay,  would  be  required  to  do  justice  to  it. 

P.  S. — We  have  alluded  to  a  Greek  manual  of  prayer, 
called  the  Synopsis,  and  to  the  fact  that  it  contains  nine 
prayers,  one  of  them  twelve  pages  in  length,  to  the  Virgin 
Mary.  We  add  here  a  short  extract  from  another  of 
them  :  “  Thou  knowest,  O  mistress,  mother  of  God,  that  I 
am  as  a  foreign  bird,  not  knowing  where  to  lay  my  head, 
except  on  the  mother  of  Christ  and  our  God.  Thou,  O 
mistress,  art  my  help,  thou  my  propitiation,  thou  my  shield, 
thou  my  sponsor  before  God,  thou  my  father,  thou  my  mother, 
thou  my  guide.  In  thee  I  repose  all  my  hope,”  &c.  &c. 


/ 


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DS107.H57 

A  visit  to  my  father-land  :  being  notes 
Princeton  Theological  Seminary-Speer  Library 


1  1012  00066  5200 


